


The Lost and Lonely

by AngelGlass



Category: Labyrinth (1986)
Genre: Beauty and the Beast Elements, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, F/M, Jareth is a jerk but not dark or abusive, Redemption, Romance, no Stockholm Syndrome
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-31
Updated: 2020-12-31
Packaged: 2021-03-10 16:28:38
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 18
Words: 37,858
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28450176
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AngelGlass/pseuds/AngelGlass
Summary: A Beauty and the Beast inspired story, enemies to lovers. A selfish, conceited goblin King has given up on the idea of breaking his curse, when Sarah is wished away to him by none other than Toby. Now, they have to live with each other, as much as both loathe the idea of it. She learns that he is not as he seems. He learns to never underestimate her. Originally published on FFN, February 2020.
Relationships: Jareth/Sarah Williams
Comments: 12
Kudos: 57





	1. Once Upon a Time

**Author's Note:**

> Hi and thank you for taking a chance at reading this story! It's one that I published earlier this year, one of my quarantine stories lol. I will say that this is more "inspired" than based on Beauty and the Beast although there are a lot of similar elements. Jareth is a massive jerk, but not abusive or anything like that towards Sarah. There's no Stockholm syndrome (you'll see what I mean) so if that was something that made you hesitate, don't worry about it!
> 
> I hope that you will enjoy this story as much as I enjoyed writing it!

Once upon a time, in a world of magic, there was a young prince. He was born to a particular race of immortals called Faeries, living his life without any real care for anyone or anything but himself.

He may be a Prince, but nowhere anyone who would ever have to rule anything one day. He had older siblings and cousins who would have such an honor. Not that he cared. Why would he? He already riches, parties, and any form of entertainment that he wanted. Someone else can take care of other people, he would stay where he was with his endless fun.

The young Prince was a classic example of someone who was not evil, but not quite good either. He was a selfish man who would not seek to hurt anyone, but he would not seek to help one in need either. Nothing was more important to him but himself. Anything he wanted, he got just by his natural charm. However, he never deceived anyone, for he never needed nor wanted to.

When he grew out of adolescence, his family realized the result of their neglect. He was so far gone, he would not listen to reason, thinking with the idea of "every person for themselves" for he had a false sense of entitlement, thinking that he had hardships that were comparable to others.

One particular night, he was hosting a ball, as he often did. Beautiful men and women adorned their faces with jewels, their lips painted and their cheeks powdered. They had on the finest threads used for their clothing and the finest tailors make it just for them.

As was common for weary travelers, they would approach homes and other living places, no matter how run down or how grand it was as there were not always inns that were easily accessible. One such woman, obviously sickly looking, was knocking on the castle door, pleading to come in.

The workers took her in, as the Prince did not mind weary travelers so long as they do not bother his partying schedule. It was also the rules of hospitality, to play the good host for a weary traveler.

However, this lady in particular wanted to thank him for his hospitality as he was the host. She had a glass of milk and settled in a spot in the kitchen. She turned to a maid to ask for help. "My dear, can't you ask for the master or mistress of the house to come and greet me?"

"He's at a party currently, madam." She said kindly. This was normally enough of a reason, for the Prince did not like to be disturbed. "He will not be available."

"Oh? What kind of a party is it?" She asked. "Exclusive invitation?"

The main snorted. "If it wasn't then I don't know what is."

"So he passes out individual invitations?" The woman asked.

"No, madam." The maid replied. "There is no formal invitation, just certain people of a particular caliber are invited to be here. Forgive me, but I must leave to serve His Royal Highness."

* * *

"Your Royal Highness, a pleasant party as always." One nobleman praised him and handed him a drink. "You always have new ideas and the best of times."

The Prince smiled at the praise. "Why, thank you. My workers help me set things up. Not like I would do it myself anyhow."

"Ah, but you designed it. And they get handsomely paid, don't they?"

"Indeed they do."

A few dances, and the Prince was twirling a few ladies and some gentlemen here and there in his arms, adoring the attention by all as the most desirable bachelor in the realm.

He would always remain a bachelor, to the disappointment of nearly everyone. They would get a dance, a kiss, just a small taste of him then take their leave. He did not need to marry like his higher ranking family, so why would he? And he had no love for any person. He thought it was a load of hogwash anyway. Love. Even his own parents did not love each other. And what was the point of a marriage if two people could not even stand each other?

Out of the corner of his eye, there was something, or rather, someone who did not match the scene. In the pristine floor among the rich and wealthy was a sick woman who was huddling towards him.

The Prince did not like this at all. It ruined the scene and made his guests uncomfortable to see poverty. He had to amend this right away!

"Are you the good Prince who has allowed me in?" She asked him, her face masked by the hood of her rags.

"I ask that you leave the party, please." He said with words sharper than a knife. "I have guests to attend to. You may stay in the guest room, I shall have someone set it up for you."

"I just wanted to thank you." She held something out. "Please take it as my token of gratitude."

He curiously looked at what was in her hands.

A peach.

A perfectly round peach, with the loveliest aroma coming from it. Considering how she was dressed in rags and asking for a place to stay with nothing but the clothes on her back, one should realize how precious such a gift is, especially as she did not even take one nibble off of it.

The Prince did not think this way.

He shoved it back to her without a second glance. "Thank you, but please leave. I do not have time for this nonsense."

She reached after him. "Sir, that is a delicacy. It is the only thing of value that I had to give you."

"I don't need pity or even thanks." He whirled on her. "I have everything I would ever need, it is an insult to my and my wealth to offer me something like this. I will not have myself owing you."

His pride was hit, because he did not understand what it was like to say _"thank you"_ for the sake of it and not for any ulterior motives.

"You refuse to accept a gift from one like me? Why, because I am not well off like you are? Because you see me as a charity case or one you must put up for that is what duty says?" She gritted her teeth.

He bent down to what would be her eye level. "If you dare speak ill to me, then you can walk right out the front door!"

His roar was so loud that even the music stopped. The guests all were pointing and whispering about what could make the Prince so angry.

It only took a few seconds for the partygoers to heckle and boo at the visitor. For how dare she ruin their fun?

The Prince had expected her to whither away or to listen to him, so that he can go back to his fun.

What he did not expect was for her to throw her hood back and to stare at him with the deepest kind of disappointment and fury.

She, like every other fae, had magic. But she was more powerful than most.

For she was the High Queen of the Underground.

She was also the Prince's grandmother.

He got to his knees and begged when he saw her floating in the air, her golden blonde hair flowing around her. In her earlier days, she had not just been a beautiful woman, but a warrior.

"Please." The Prince clasped his hands, begging. "Please forgive me."

"SILENCE!" She commanded him. "I am so disappointed in you, myself, and your father for allowing you to be like this. He knew better than to leave you to your own devices and to have unlimited access to wealth. I should have paid more attention, and it is one of my deepest regrets that my own posterity would be so cold and cruel to a weary traveler, a grave sin, as you well know."

"I did not know who you were, Grandmother!" He said.

"It does not matter!" She bellowed. "You are no better than the other creatures of the Underground. No one is above anyone else! Not even I, for being a ruler means to in the service of others. Unfortunately, your cousin Hathor is right, you are too far gone to have any normal punishment."

She swept her hand around the room of people who had also gotten on their knees. "You all should be ashamed of yourselves! Not only did you allow my grandson to go on with this behavior, you have participated in such heinous acts! Every guest here, mark my words, you will be let go, but next time, I will not be so kind."

They all whispered words of affirmation that they understood her.

The Prince breathed in a sigh of relief. "Thank you, Your High Majesty."

She floated to him. "You, my precious grandson, how I have had so many fond memories of you as a boy bouncing on my knee. I love you more than words can say." She placed a hand under his chin.

He felt optimistic at this. So he would just go back and party, and to tell his workers to not let anyone bother him and set his temper, that was all he needed to do.

The High Queen's countenance changed into one of great sadness. "Which is why this will hurt more than tearing my limbs apart to do."

He didn't even get to ask when he felt icy cold winds blowing around him, as if he was moving through a tornado.

When it stopped, he opened his eyes and saw that he was no longer in his castle. He was on stone floors instead of fancy marble, his grandmother in front of him.

"Where am I?" He asked her.

She opened a curtain. "You, my boy, are in Goblin City. They have a need for a king or a queen, as the last one in line has passed away."

"No." The Prince started at her in horror. "You can't."

"You need to understand the importance of taking responsibility for your own actions." She said without passion in her voice.

"I can't be king!" He yelled at her. "No, you can't do this to me!"

"Prince Jareth, I now declare you King of the Goblins."

"NO!"

Anywhere but here, where he would be isolated from the majority of his kind.

"And to further your punishment, you will be isolated from other immortals who live here as well. No more grand balls. No more exclusive parties. It is time you learned to care for every sentient creature. It's time for you to stop being so conceited and entitled."

"And how long will you keep me here for?" He roared at her, no longer trying to gain her favor. "Until I rot from madness at not being able to communicate with a sentient person?"

She folded her arms. "You are being dramatic as always. You have dwarves, goblins, foxes, rock callers, many others who can communicate. This castle has books as well. You can improve the lives of others, be a better man. To answer your question, Jareth, you will be isolated here until someone will proclaim to you his or her love for you and to you. Truly, really love you. Not because of an illusion. Not because they love the idea of love, but because that person loves you with every bit of their heart. Until you can find one who will break this spell, you will remain here for eternity. Hopefully by that time, you will have learned to think of someone other than yourself without ulterior motives. That you may learn to love yourself."

"How can that happen if I'm isolated from everyone?" He demanded.

"There will be a way." She promised. "For it has been foretold that it will."

"You believe in silly, nonsense prophecies?" He asked.

"It is the only thing that gives me faith in you to one day have a fulfilling life." She said with sadness in her eyes. "You are so far gone, my grandson."

He said nothing. His eyes were filled with the most foul hatred.

The High Queen started to disappear. "May you be deserving of happiness and to one day receive it."

When she disappeared, goblins came around him to swear fealty but he did not care. He ran out of the castle and tried to leave the Goblin Kingdom but could not from some invisible force field. He ran around the castle, frantic with worry.

Who would love him? The only people who came around were children who were wished away and anyone who was grown were Runners of the Labyrinth.

Besides, who could ever love someone like him?

For the first time, he admitted who he was. For who would ever love a monstrous beast like himself?


	2. The Child You Have Stolen

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Introducing Sarah, about five years later after the events of the film. lots of love!

Sarah Williams was home from college for spring break. She was looking forward to spending time with her family for a while and look for summer jobs before her last year of school. If possible, she may even see some of her friends from childhood and high school.

But the person that she looked forward to spending time with the most, by far, was her brother, Toby.

He was six years old now, healthy and very intelligent. At least that's what Sarah thought, she supposed that everyone thought that about their child or siblings but he really was very smart. And their bond was incredibly strong, even with the many years between them.

She parked her car in the driveway and excitedly walked to the front door, eyes bright and excited. The door opened to a blonde lady (Karen always dyed her hair different colors and Sarah always tried to guess which one she would be doing now).

"Sarah!" Her stepmother enveloped her into a hug. "You're earlier than expected! I'm not even done washing your bedsheets yet."

Since her teen years, she had grown to understand that her stepmother truly loved her, and was doing her best. She was a kind woman with many flaws but no one can say that she didn't love Sarah.

Sarah waved. "Nah, don't worry about it, it's not like I'll be sleeping right now anyway. I'm just glad that you kept my room for me to use."

"Well, so long as you want, that room is yours." Karen smiled. "What's that you got there?"

"Oh this?" Sarah held up a bottle of wine with a big smile. "It feels good to be old enough to buy alcohol by myself!"

"Ah, just what we need!" Karen beamed. "Your father asked me to get some for this evening but I guess you beat us to it. How do you feel, being 21 years old now?"

"Meh." Sarah set her purse down. "Not really any different, and you know me, I was studying on my birthday anyway, nothing fun."

Karen puckered her lip out in sympathy. "Well, I'm afraid life isn't that exciting here but we can do something to celebrate your birthday besides the usual dinner."

"Oh, how can it not be exciting? You got a six year old." Sarah laughed. "And speaking of which, where is the little buddy?"

Right on cue, she saw a mass of messy blond hair zooming towards her from the back kitchen door. "SARAH!"

Sarah was almost knocked backwards at Toby hugging her legs. His blue eyes looked at her with pure adoration. "I missed you!"

"I missed you too!" Sarah picked him up, and with great difficulty. "Holy cow, you're so heavy!"

"He's growing like crazy, isn't he?" Karen agreed.

"PIGGY BACK!" Toby tugged at her.

"Toby let your sister settle for a minute!" Karen laughed. "I know you're excited."

"I got all week for you." Sarah ruffled his hair lovingly. "Why don't you help me bring my things to my room?"

"Okay!" He trotted after her.

They talked and played a few games together. Toby told her about how he and his friends were making dinosaur drawings and that he was pretending to be a Jedi at school during recess. When it was dinner time, he was still talking her ear off.

"-and then Mom and Dad let me watch Star Wars last weekend!"

"And what did you think?" Sarah asked.

"I'm going to be a Jedi!" He grabbed a stick he found from outside and made lightsaber noises.

The door opened and Sarah saw her father, Robert, standing at the door. "Sarah!"

Sarah went to hug him. "Hi Dad! WHOA!"

He picked her up mid hug and swung her around, the two laughing their heads off, just as they did when she was small.

"Hi Daddy!" Toby hugged his father who picked him up and kissed his cheek.

"My two kids are here, and my lovely wife made some delicious food." He sniffed the air and gave Karen a loving kiss. "What could be more perfect than this?"

They dined and chatted happily, Toby asking for wine then made a face when Robert allowed him one small drop on his tongue, yelling that it tasted gross and that grownups were weird.

After dinner, Sarah saw her stepmother starting to dress into comfy pajamas. "Karen, today's Friday. Isn't it date night for you and Dad?"

"Oh it's fine, you're home, and we don't have a babysitter anyway." She waved dismissively.

"Karen, I'm not a dumb 16 year old anymore." Sarah folded her arms and smiled. "I can babysit Toby, it's okay."

"It's not that I don't trust you, it's that he's very stubborn about going to bed lately." Karen said. "I don't want you to have to deal with that on your first night back for break."

"I got him, I promise!" She smiled. "Go to a movie or take a walk around that pretty park with Dad or something. Spend some quality time together that doesn't involve the little Squirt. Even if he stays up late, it's just one night."

"Hmm, that does sound nice..." Karen smiled gratefully. "Alright, you've convinced me."

Thirty minutes later, Toby and Sarah made a fort and were making puppet shadows.

"Hey, you two!" Robert opened the flap and sat with them for a moment. "Looks like fun!"

"Can you play with me here tomorrow, Daddy?" Toby begged. "It's so much fun!"

Robert patted his head. "Sure! Hey, I'm going to have a date with your mom now, okay? Listen to Sarah and go to bed when she says so."

He turned to Sarah. "Thank you for suggesting a date night, it's been a bit stressful and I was tired but Karen and I really do need some time alone."

"I get it, Dad." She beamed. "You guys go and have a good time. I can hold the fort down on my own." She waved her hand around their fort.

Robert shook his head at the pun. "Dad jokes are my thing! Alright, don't burn the house down!"

"Why do you always say that?" Toby rolled his eyes.

"Bye!" Robert waved before Toby could sass him some more.

The two siblings played for a bit in the fort, and then it was time for bed. Getting Toby to change and brush his teeth wasn't too bad, but to actually stay in bed was another issue.

He was tired and cranky but he absolutely didn't want to sleep.

"I. DON'T. WANT. TO!" He stomped his feet and glared at Sarah.

Sarah sat next to him. "Kiddo, you have to sleep."

"Why do you get to stay up?" He grumbled.

"Because I did my time of sleeping early at your age." She put her hands on her hips. "Listen, if you're good, I'll sneak in a marshmallow to you tomorrow when you're Mom's not looking. But you can't tell anyone or else I'll never do that again."

Toby contemplated this, unsure. Then he nodded. "Okay, but can you read a story?"

Obviously he was stalling but she figured that one story wasn't going to hurt. "Sure. Which one?"

She expected him to pick some Dr. Seuss book, quick and easy.

But instead, he picked a small, red book.

The Labyrinth.

"This one!" Toby put it in her hands, totally unaware of how his sister was turning pale. "I like this story! Mom was reading it to me earlier."

"Where did you find this book?" She asked, her throat suddenly dry.

He shuffled his feet. "I went in your room. And I found it. I like the story of the girl and the Goblin King, can you read it for me?"

Sarah held the book, still unsure. She hadn't read it since that day... "I don't know buddy, it's really long."

Toby started to whine. "Sa-rah! I want you to read it! NOW!"

He stomped his feet and grunted all over, then sat on his bed, angry.

"Aw, come on Tobes." Sarah tried to sit next to him but he just moved to another spot.

"You just want me to sleep, just like Mommy and Daddy!" He yelled. "I want to play, and you're supposed to be cooler than them."

Sarah gasped and put a hand on her chest, pretending to be very much offended. "I AM cooler than them! I offered you a marshmallow! Now, would Mommy and Daddy do that?"

"You're making fun of me." He grumbled. "I'm angry at you."

Sarah sat by his feet. "Well, I don't want you to be mad at me. What can I do to help? What compromise can we agree on?"

Children are just tiny humans. They are often still learning about their own feelings and how to express them. They're still learning about how the world works and how people around them feel. That's how Sarah was trying to show him, to reason with him.

Toby didn't want to think about how Sarah was looking at him sadly. He knew that she wasn't going to let him stay up late because she was on their parent's side. He knew that he wanted to stay up, and he was going to do it. He was so angry that there was only one thought in his mind.

"You're mean!" He yelled at Sarah.

Sarah tried so hard to not roll her eyes. "Toby-"

"I WISH THE GOBLINS WOULD TAKE YOU AWAY RIGHT NOW!"

Thunder could be heard almost instantly, even though there was no sign of lightning. Sarah opened her mouth in horror. "Toby, what did you do?"

Before she knew it, a strange feeling swept her up. It was like lighting ripping through her body but she felt no pain. She didn't even feel human, but rather, like the wind itself.

In the distance, she was sure that she heard goblins whispering.

It felt like an eternity but also instantaneous when she could feel her limbs again. At first, everything felt hazy and groggy, like she just woke up. The memories came back first, the ones of her coming home and then getting wished away by Toby.

Thank god, it must be a nightmare, she thought.

But why did her bed feel so hard? Why didn't she have a pillow?

She slowly sat up and rubbed her eyes. The first thing she saw were a pair of boots.

She slowly looked up to meet a pair of mismatched, bright blue eyes from a man with peculiar hair and eye markings.

The Goblin King.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Jareth is here!
> 
> So this chapter is based a lot on my own family and my siblings. I'm the oldest, with three younger siblings. Toby is a mixture of all my siblings, how they loved to play but also argue with you at every single turn lol. And does anyone else's dad tell them to not burn the house down? Because my stepdad does that ALL the time lol.
> 
> Any and all reviews are appreciated, as always.


	3. My Kingdom As Great

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have an explanation for my train of thoughts at the bottom of this chapter if you're curious. Thanks again for reading this story! You are so sweet.

"What are you doing here?" He asked sharply. His eyes looked furious, but not necessarily at her. More like, about her but not directed totally at her.

"I should ask you the same question." She stood up, and was vaguely aware of the pairs of eyes directed right at her. The goblins were all looking them curiously, and were quiet for once.

He stood up and she realized that he was holding a riding crop. She wanted to back up, but forced herself not to.

 _You have no power over me,_ she chanted to herself. _You have no power over me_.

He tapped the side of his leg with the crop and looked around. "Anyone care to explain to me why and how she's here?"

No one said a word.

"WELL?" He roared, making Sarah jump. He pointed at one random goblin. "You! Batty!"

"Yes, Kingy?" The little goblin squeaked.

"Why is a grown woman in my throne room?" He demanded.

The goblin shuffled forward. "She was wished away."

"By who?"

"B-by the boy, the boy you like, kingy."

The Goblin King closed his eyes, breathing through his nose. "Oh, the irony."

He turned to Sarah, who was nervous but would not let him intimidate her. She had defeated him once, after all.

"Tell me, Sarah." He had a hint of a smirk. "How is it that your brother is able to not only learn the words, but mean them enough to wish you away? Hmm?"

Sarah could feel her confidence fading but she tilted her head up a little higher. "My stepmom read that book to him. It wasn't of my own doing. Trust me."

"And yet, you are here." He clicked his tongue. "What to do with you? I was not expecting nor wanting a visitor, much less you."

She folded her arms. "Good, we both don't want me here. So just send me home."

The King sputtered.

Then laughed.

He glared at the room after a few chuckles. "Well?"

The goblins laughed and he along with them.

Sarah made a face. What was wrong with him? Well, she wasn't going to let him intimidate her or make her feel bad.

"What's so funny?" She bit out. "You want to keep me here or something? Some part of your twisted game?"

"You think I _want_ to keep you?" He looked at her with absurdity. "Are you so full of yourself that you would think that I devised some plan to keep you here?"

She pursed her lips together. "It wouldn't be the first time that you tried to trick me and keep me here."

"Please," he sat back on his throne, sprawled out lazily. "It was part of a game. I did what I had to do, you wanted that fantasy, I gave it." He waved his hand around and a crystal appeared.

Some strange feeling filled Sarah. She wasn't sure why she felt a twinge of longing and sadness at learning that she was just a game to him. But, wasn't that what she always thought? He just confirmed it.

She realized right then, that deep in her heart, she wanted to mean something more than that to him. He seemed so sincere in the ballroom and the room with the stairs, when he sang to her and begged to be her slave.

Whatever. She had her fair share of stupid boys who lied to her about having feelings for her before. Why should this one be any different?

"So why can't you give me back then?" She held her arms out.

"I suppose I could." He looked at her. "But you were wished away. There is only one way for you to leave here."

Sarah raised her eyebrows. Did she have to ask him every single step of the way? Why can't he just tell her instead of making her anxious. "And that is…?"

The Goblin King looked at her like it was the most obvious answer. "Why, the person who wished you away has to run the Labyrinth and defeat it, of course."

Sarah opened her mouth in horror. "That would mean that Toby-"

"Would have to run, yes. Would you like me to go and ask him?"

She looked at the floor. Her baby brother, so little and helpless. After everything she did to amend her mistake, to win him back, she couldn't risk him getting hurt. "No." She said in a small voice. "Leave him out of this. Whatever happens, I don't want him to get hurt."

If she had been looking at the king, she would have seen him soften at the break in her voice. She would have seen his eyes open up, his sneer turned into a sad frown.

But alas, she was not looking.

"So what happens now?" She said in a resigned voice. "Do you turn me into a goblin or something?"

The King looked appalled at the question. "Why would I do that? There are too many of them around here anyway. I send children wished away to be with other fae creatures. The part about the goblins, that was just a line in the book. Which was, by the way, written far before I became king by some runner."

He paused for a moment, seeing her tears falling to the floor.

He closed his eyes again. Why did such a peaceful day have to be interrupted with HER of all people? "I don't know what to do with you, truthfully. I only ever get children."

He looked out the window in thought. "For now at least, I suppose you will have to stay here, in the castle and Goblin City. I'm not sure if it would be safe for your outside that area."

He walked towards her, using his crop to tilt her chin up. She had tear streaks down her cheeks and her face was red and blotchy, but her eyes were just as defiant and strong as before, even if resigned.

He looked at her eyes but spoke to everyone else in the room. "I want to be clear that she is to be treated as a guest, understood?"

There was a bit of mumbling by the goblins.

"We never has grown-up guest before." One of them said quietly.

"Understood?!" The King repeated himself.

"Yes Kingy!" They said in unison.

He removed the crop from her chin. "Give her anything she needs for the duration of her stay." He turned back to Sarah. "I can be cruel, but if you recall, I can be generous as well."

Sarah couldn't really find humor in the situation, so she stayed quiet.

He made a sound of disapproval. "Evie?"

A little goblin came walking forward. "Yes Kingy?"

"I want you to be Lady Sarah's, oh what's the word? Maid? Servant? Helper? Whatever she needs, you are to give her aid."

"Yes Kingy!" She gave a clumsy bow. "I will help!"

"Make sure she has clothing, a room to stay on the third floor, and anything else she may need."

She nodded. "Okie Dokie!"

He turned back to Sarah. "I will take my leave now. I expect to see you at dinner."

He disappeared and suddenly, without a trace except for the trail of glitter on the floor of the throne room.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wanted to eliminate any traces of Stockholm syndrome. I don't think Belle totally has it in the Disney films, but she sure does in the original fairy tale. Heck, apparently it was written for girls to feel happy in forced marriages! Like what the heck. That's why Sarah is not a prisoner. You will see more of Jareth's backstory, but he's almost as much of a victim of the situation as she is (notice I said almost because he messes up too).
> 
> It just seems icky that the beast keeps her as prisoner, and doesn't let her leave. Yes he DOES actually love her and changes, but Belle loving him back can be seen as dubious. Notice I said CAN not that it is, and I really feel like especially after what we've seen Jareth do in the film ("fear me, love me, I've done everything for you" and while he does he simultaneously contradicts himself and expects her to understand). Also, it's just much more entertaining for Jareth to go "oh, ew, you" and for Sarah to then go "I don't want to see your face either!" 
> 
> What I love about Beauty and the Beast is two people getting to know each other. I love how the beast has a redemption story. I love Belle's feistiness.


	4. It's Not Fair

Jareth had to leave the throne room immediately.

He had no idea what he was going to do with her.

In all his time as king, he never had anyone besides himself and goblins stay in the castle.

And HER of all people. He didn't even know that was possible. Why did the first adult to be wished away in his time as king have to be her? Why could it not have been someone else?

With children, he would dress them up and have goblins take them to the villages where there were other adults to adopt. He may never see those subjects, but he was still king. He still made laws and listened indirectly to grievances (through letters).

This was not how it was at first.

Oh no. Not at all. He absolutely refused to do any work at all. Goblins waited on him hand and foot. He was annoyed. And bored.

So bored.

As Goblin King, he was able go to Above easily, but he was unable to change into his regular fae form, always existing as an owl unless he visited someone who wished a child away. This never happened to other Goblin Kings or Queens, for they always had tales of traveling and what the Aboveground was like.

It must be a part of his damn punishment. The only people in that he could ever see in the Underground were runners.

That all changed one day, when he witnessed the first child being wished away. You never forget that first child. The baby's mother wished him away, begging Jareth to take the boy as she was not in a good place to raise a baby. The way she kissed the boy's head and passed him to Jareth's arms made the king soften. He never had that affection from his own parents.

The baby was so, so sick. He was dying, even. The mother knew that she had given her child a possible second chance, in hopes that he could live.

Jareth carried the baby, unsure of how to even care for him. All he had to help him were instruction books on children, as goblins were practically useless.

He was blessed with a very beautiful singing voice. So he sang for him, even as he was crying in pain. He soothed him and kept him warm, feeding him and holding him close.

A few days, as he tried to stay up to care for the babe, the child died.

Jareth was forever changed. For the first time, he witnessed death. He knew what it was, of course. He had even attended funerals. But to see it here, up close and raw, and the fact that he had never lost anyone he cared about tore him apart. He tried every way he could to bring him back, even the goblins were looking at the pair sadly.

He didn't know what to really do, so he took him to the castle grounds and buried him with his own bare hands. For once, he didn't care about the dirt on his impeccably clean clothes. He didn't care about the tear streaks on his face. All he knew was that he needed to do something right for someone.

In honor of the babe, he planted a peach tree where the grave was. A tree of dreams, dreams that the child would never get to experience.

That child did not deserve to die. And he realized, he himself did not deserve the fancy parties and the glamorous life that he had experienced as a prince.

Life wasn't fair. That's how it was.

* * *

Sarah was in a very fancy room, the biggest and most beautiful room that she had ever been in. She normally would be jumping up and exploring everything.

But how could she?

She was stuck here, and would not be able to leave. She can't see her family again. Not her friends. Not even to finish her degree. She was stuck in this world, a world she never cared to come back to. Sure, she had missed her friends but not the place itself. And certainly not HIM.

Evie, her little goblin helper, told her to sleep then she can go and dine with the king.

Sarah didn't want to. She didn't want to see that nasty Goblin King with his bad attitude and crazy hair. But she supposed that he didn't really have a choice either, and he was being somewhat kind to her. He could've just thrown her out of the castle if he wanted. The moment he tipped her face with his riding crop and saw her tears, she saw a soft moment she had not seen in him except for in that crystal dream.

Which was apparently all fake, according to him.

But if that was true, how could she have dreamed a song herself?

She must have fallen asleep for she felt Evie shaking her awake. "Lady, you have to dress for dinner."

Sarah rubbed her eyes and yawned. "Okay, I'll wash up."

She was about to reach the bathroom when she saw a very pretty dress. It was a comfortable yet fancy renaissance looking dress, a deep purple with lace trimmings. It was something her inner teen would have killed to have worn.

"Do I have to wear this?" She still wanted to be defiant.

Evie looked thoroughly offended. "Yes! Lady must wear when meet Kingy! And I got it for you too!"

Fine, whatever. Sarah was too tired to argue. She supposed that getting him upset was the wrong move anyway. Why give him more reason to be upset with her?

She washed up and put the dress on. It was very pretty and it seemed very nicely done. It also seemed a tad old, like someone had to restore it. It was a good fit except that it was a little too tall for her.

She put on silk slippers that Evie had also laid out. She chose to go bare faced, not caring about looking pretty. And not for _him_.

Evie lead her to the dining hall where she saw that the Goblin King was already sitting at the head of a very long table. Sarah noticed that he stood when she walked in the room, looking more than unhappy.

"You're late." He said briskly.

Oh so that's how he was going to start it off. Fine. "You never gave me a time," she shrugged. "And I don't even have a clock to know said time."

She didn't say it angrily. She didn't say it rudely. She just said it with her matter-of-fact kind of voice.

"Hmm." Was all he said in response.

Sarah took it to mean that she was totally correct.

He gestured to the only place that was set, directly to his right. "Please, have a seat."

She did as told, carefully eyeing him as she sat down.

He took a bell and rang it. Just on cue, goblins, dwarves, and other creatures came holding trays of food and drinks.

She wasn't very hungry, she realized. Though it was dinner time now for him, it was only a few hours ago that should have been her bed time. Not to mention the amount of crying she did in her room made her exhausted. But to be polite, she would have a few bites anyway.

He saw that she waited to take the first bite after he did. Good. She did have manners after all.

They ate in silence, Sarah trying to not pick at her food and watching the King eat now and then to know how to eat certain foods. It was very delicious. She probably should have cared about whether it was laced with magic or poison, but for some reason she felt like he didn't want to hurt her. He was clearly not happy to have seen her in the first place so if he wanted to hurt her, he would have.

When he finished eating, so did she. She couldn't finish eating her dinner, mostly because of the different time zone. Did they have time zones here? How did the Underground even work?

The King gave her a long and hard look. "You don't have to stop eating on my account. You may finish your dinner."

She folded her hands in her lap. "Thank you, but I'm not very hungry."

"Is the food not to your liking?" He asked, sounding like a challenge that she would not like the same food that is given to a king.

She shook her head. "No not that. It was delicious, actually. I just am not very hungry because of my body clock. I should be asleep right now during the night, so it just feels odd to eat dinner."

She traced the outline of her napkin. "And I'm sorry if I've wasted food."

He waved dismissively. "Don't worry about that. It can be stored as a leftovers if you would like or we can get rid of it."

"Leftovers would be fine." She said quietly.

They sat in silence again for a moment. And once again, he was the one to break it.

"How is your room? Is it to your liking?" He asked.

It felt very sincere and not at all just one of those filler questions, surprising her.

"Yes, it's beautiful. It's very lovely, I have no complaints except for the clock thing." She forced a little smile that didn't quite meet her eyes.

He gave a slight smile back but it also did not meet his eyes. "I am glad to hear that."

Again, more silence.

"Sarah-"

"I'll go to my room."

Both spoke at the same time.

Sarah stood up and cleared her throat. "Since that's all, I suppose I'll just go to my room."

He raised an eyebrow. "But I did not dismiss you."

She was getting a headache from this.

"Forgive me for being frank, but you're not my dad and even if you are, I'm an adult. I don't need to be dismissed from dinner." She informed him, resisting the urge to fold her arms or to look too defiant.

He obviously did not like this. "But I am a king. It is the correct etiquette."

"I come from a democracy, everyone is equal."

"No, you're wrong." He lazily put his feet up on the chair next to him. So much for etiquette. "The United States of America is a constitutional republic, not a democracy. Not everyone has a direct say in every law since you vote for representatives."

"Yes and no." She sat down. "You can classify the United States as a democracy as well, a type of representative democracy. Not direct, but still a democracy. So, you're wrong by telling me I'm wrong."

"That seems like a stretch to me, especially if positions like the Supreme Court is not decided on by the people but by the president."

"The president is voted by the people if you recall." She said triumphantly.

"Oh? What about your electoral college?" He rolled a crystal in his hand. "If a certain number of representatives vote for a candidate, it can overrule the popular vote can it not?"

Sarah blinked. He was right.

He chuckled and poured some water for himself.

"Regardless, you're a king. But not my king." She folded her arms. Why did it feel almost... fun to debate with him? Even though she basically lost this round?

"Wrong again. You were wished away, therefore, you're my subject." He set the jug of water down. "Ready to admit you're wrong?"

"But that doesn't mean you get to dismiss me." She said with finality. "You may be a king, and that should mean some respect but it doesn't mean everything. I politely excused myself so yes I should be able to leave."

He thought about this for a moment. "What if your president and first lady invited you to the White House for a state dinner? What would you do? I am certain that you would wait for them to dismiss you or for them to dismiss themselves first."

"If I really needed to leave or really wanted to, yes I can." She said with confidence. "And besides, this isn't a state dinner. I'm just eating with you. That's more casual and that gives me even more of a reason to be able to leave when I want."

She smiled large and wide, triumphant. The Goblin King still mulling it over.

Then admitted defeat.

"I suppose so." He said with a grumpy voice.

"Don't be such a bad sport," Sarah was still smiling. "How did we go from being dismissed to talking about the government of my home country?"

He chuckled. "I'm not sure, but I found it highly entertaining and interesting."

Sarah laughed. "I'm sure you did."

He waved her off. "Dismissed."

"Hey, I can dismiss myself." She got up and put her hands on her hips but was grinning from ear to ear.

"Too bad, I dismissed you first, Sarah."

He had the gall to actually WINK at her too!

"Well technically I dismissed myself first, G- wait." She scratched her head. "What should I call you?"

She did know his name actually. Hoggle had said it before.

The King looked at her for a long and hard moment. "I suppose you can call me by my name, Jareth."

It had been so long since someone called him that. He rather missed it. Not that he'd admit it.

"No one calls me that here, at least not to my face lest they get bogged." He took his feet off the chair and sat like a regular person. "But when talking about me, maybe refer to me as The King especially to the goblins."

Sarah nodded. "Okay. Well, I guess I'll go to bed now then?"

He nodded. "Yes. You should sleep. I will make sure Evie wakes you up for breakfast. We can dine and discuss what we should do with you."

Sarah felt her heart sink. She didn't want to get to know a new place again. Even if this one did have a king with an attitude. They were just getting friendly.

Jareth hoped that maybe she would stay with him in his castle. And not because of the curse, he enjoyed her company and her wit. She wouldn't love him anyway, she made it clear the last time she was here. If she refused his offer of giving her quite literally anything, there's no way she would love him now.

When he tried to woo past female runners, he hoped that one would love him and set him free. He would set her free too and while her heart may be broken, he knew that broken hearts heal. Obviously it didn't work with anyone or else he'd be free. Some were enamored him and head over heels but not in love. No one did. No human. No immortal. No one.

But as time went on, he was a bit more sincere because of his isolation. He was lonely. So, so lonely. And he craved the challenge. Sarah gave him that challenge and even though she was only 16, he could see that she was an equal, something he never really considered anyone who wasn't a royalty to be. His pleas for her were more than wanting to be free, he really wanted for her to be with him.

When he lost to her, it left him weak for a long time. The Labyrinth was not meant to be bested and it's magic was tied with the monarch's. But, it wasn't just that. His pride was hurt but so was his heart. He felt depressed, for she had intrigued him and he was smitten.

Now she was here. He had no idea what to do but he would never admit his loneliness to her. He was too prideful for that.

Sarah nodded. "Sure. Breakfast sounds good."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay I have NO IDEA why I started to write a bit about US politics. That was NOT planned, their arguing just sort of evolved into its own thing. I'm keeping it in there because I feel like it fit their arguments, that their argument was not solved by agreeing on politics but more of their situation lol


	5. Basis For Comparison

Sarah waited at the table for about 20 minutes. Or maybe more? Or less? Who knows at this point.

It was dead quiet. So quiet, that she felt unnerved by it. No goblins were in sight, even Evie was gone. She took this chance to look around the dining room some more.

It was spacious and gorgeous. Granite stones for the floor and beautiful rose wood for the table, coated with black paint and a white sheet on top. She noticed that the table cloth was a different color last night. Hmm. Maybe things had gotten dirty.

She started to get agitated. She HATED waiting around for something to happen. And she still wasn't sure about Jareth. He seemed like he was very spoiled but was trying to make the best out of the situation with her. He didn't seem to hate her anymore, but he sometimes acted like he did.

What was going on his head anyway?

She jumped at hearing the doors burst open.

Jareth marched in, looking agitated himself. He saw Sarah at the table and frowned. "You are not going to stand when I come in?"

Sarah didn't like that tone that he took with her. If he informed her that it was the etiquette here, then maybe she would listen but she was not about to take this petty reaction from him.

All she did was shrug and puckered her lips in mock pity.

He walked over to her, folding his arms and narrowed his eyes. "It is extremely rude for one to not stand when someone, especially a king, enters a room. And to not respond when he asks a question is even worse."

Sarah stared at him for a few seconds.

Then slowly stood up.

She mirrored him and folded her arms as well. "Well, it appears we are even since it is _extremely_ rude to be _extremely_ late for a breakfast with someone."

Jareth exhaled through his nose in puffs so loudly, Sarah was surprised that he didn't turn into a dragon.

He didn't take his eyes off of her as he sat down in his own chair. He took the bell and rang it.

Goblins came in just as they did the night before. For breakfast, they brought in some fruit with what seemed to be yogurt and some grained breads.

Sarah thanked the goblin for serving the food in front of her, and also made sure to thank for the night before. They smiled at her, and informed her that the goblins who served her last night were a different set of goblins but said they would pass the sentiments onto them.

After the goblins left, the dining room was once again as quiet as a tomb. Jareth made no move to eat.

"What?" Sarah snapped, seeing that he was staring at her.

"You were so intent on being rude to me, and now you're waiting to eat when I do. Why be polite now?" He lifted his feet and set them on the chair next to him, completely disregarding any manners.

She closed her eyes. _Inhale, exhale. You can do it._ Just talk to him politely.

"Well, I was not, in fact, intent on being rude to you." She told him plainly. "You came in late, then demanded that I stand. If you had just told me that it was the manners to do so, then I would have understood and remembered. Instead, you demanded respect instead of presenting yourself as one who deserves it."

"I am a king, that is all that is needed to be known for what kind of respect I deserve." He took a type of fruit that looked like an orange and peeled it.

Sarah took that same fruit to do the same. "There is this famous quote from my world. And that is, 'Being powerful is like being a lady. If you have to tell people you are, you aren't.' So if you were really a true king, you would not have to tell anyone so. You would have power just by giving the dignity and respect others deserve."

"Hmm." He said in thought. "You assume much."

"What do I assume?" Sarah inquired, not understanding what he meant.

"My subjects have a good life." He said. "They have comfortable homes and abundant food. They have celebrations and are happy. You think that I abuse them?"

"I never said that." Sarah shook a finger next to herself to emphasize her point. "I never said that you were abusive, or that you would hurt anyone."

"Then what do you mean?"

"I said that you keep demanding respect. You use fear tactics. You use angry words and acting like you're better than others. If you would just-"

"YOU ARE NOT THE ONE IN POWER HERE!" He yelled at her.

"HEY!" Sarah stood. "Don't yell at me!"

He snarled. "You have no idea what it's like to be a king. You have no idea what I do. You come here with your ideologies from your own world and tell me what to do when you have not even walked a step in my shoes. Oh look, a saying I am familiar from your own world!"

Sarah blinked. "I-"

"You are here under MY kindness and MY command. And here you are, telling me how to rule my own damn kingdom!"

He threw his napkin on his plate. "And for your information, I was late because I was working. As a king. You think that I will take advice from someone who hasn't even been here a whole day?"

Sarah couldn't believe him. She scoffed. "Seriously? Look, I'm not telling you how to rule. I'm telling you how to be POLITE, something you SHOULD have been taught, that is basic manners for EVERYONE. It's not about being a king, it's about being a good person."

"Save me from the lectures." He took his breakfast on the tray and stood up. "Good day!"

And he disappeared in a cloud of glitter.

Sarah grabbed her plate too. "Unbelievable!"

* * *

Sarah sulked and went to her room. To her surprise, she found something wonderful waiting for her.

"Hoggle! Sir Didymus! Ludo!"

She was enveloped in the biggest hugs possible by them. They were extremely happy to see her and she to them.

"Oh, I've missed you so!" She gave a kiss on everyone's cheek, Hoggle protesting because of his fear of the Goblin King.

Sarah started to cry. Ludo held her while Didymus patted her hand and Hoggle smoothed her hair.

"Why Sawah cry?" Ludo patted her back.

Sarah wiped her tears, not realizing how emotional she was. "I tried to call you guys for years. But you never came back."

"We couldn't, my Lady." Sir Didymus said with sadness. "His Majesty wouldn't let us to to thee."

"What?" Sarah couldn't believe it. "He wouldn't?"

"He said that we was traitors." Hoggle said with great disdain. "Damn him! He made us feel bad!"

Hoggle kept on talking about how much of a jerk Jareth was, but Sarah was no longer listening.

All she could see was red. That no good, rotten king had the NERVE to be so arrogant and then prevent her friends from seeing her. What was wrong with him?

"-he's been in such a bad mood ever since you ran the labyrinth and - Sarah?" Hoggle saw her eyes sort of glass over.

Sarah stood up. "He has ABSOLUTELY NO RIGHT TO KEEP MY FRIENDS FROM ME!" She seethed. "I don't care how mad he is, to prevent someone from seeing friends because he's feeling petty is not okay!"

Before anyone said anything, she stormed off.

Sir Didymus looked at Hoggle. "Brother Hoggle! You know that the king is a good man!"

"He's a bully and a rat." Hoggle mumbled. "He wouldn't let us see her!"

"But you can see that their relationship is strained. You know how our Lady is so fiery, now I am worried that because of your words," he poked at Hoggle with a stick. "That he will now show his bad side!"

"Hasn't he always been on his bad side?" Hoggle shoved Didymus, irritated.

"Yes, but the goblins say that he has considered her a guest of honor! This may have ruined any good graces she has with him!"

"HOGGLE BAD!" Ludo yelled at him. "Make King mad!"

"Why ya gotta blame me?!" Hoggle sighed, his lips shaking in sadness.

Sir Didymus felt a bit bad. "It's not all thy fault, my friend, she makes her own decisions as well but now whatever delicate balance may have been broken."

"Well what are we waiting for then?" Hoggle got up. "Let's go after her before she ruins things. SARAH!"

"SAWAH!" Ludo called after her.

"My Lady, please listen to us!" Sir Didymus trotted to her as quick as he could. "Ambrosias, will you catch up?"

* * *

But Sarah did not listen. She stomped down the hall in anger. "JARETH!"

She had no idea how to find him, but she was going to storm the whole freaking castle until she did. "JARETH! GET YOUR BUTT HERE RIGHT THIS INSTANT!"

She got to another section of the hallway and shut the door on her friends. This was her anger and they did not need to get involved. She wandered around for another five minutes before she decided to go outside to look for him.

When she was outside, she realized how absolutely tired she was. And hungry. She hadn't finished her breakfast after Jareth stormed out.

Walking around, she saw a tree. A tall, beautiful peach tree. It was majestic and the leaves seemed to almost glow in the sunlight.

Hanging on the lowest branch was a peach. Large, juicy, ripe and ever so tantalizing.

Ever since her adventure in the Labyrinth, she had avoided peaches. Not because she hated them, as much as she tried to tell herself that. In fact, she was tempted by them.

She supposed she felt like what Eve would have felt in the Garden of Eden. Or Snow White when she took the red apple. Persephone when Hades offered her a pomegranate. There was something otherworldly about it, something so tempting. Even forbidden.

Something about this area just felt almost sacred. As if she should be taking her shoes off or something, like she was not supposed to be touching anything.

It was not magic that was beckoning her to do it. It was something in her, something from deep within that made her want to have a tiny taste.

She reached for it, plucking it out of the tree. All thoughts of Jareth fled her mind as she was intent on savoring this peach.

She opened her mouth and sank her teeth into the succulent flesh. It was so sweet and so delicious, she had never tasted anything like it! Her eyes rolled back as she took another bite, the taste of it satisfying her hunger.

"What. Are. You. DOING?"

Sarah turned around, having taken the last bite of the peach, only the pit left.

Jareth stood about ten feet away from her, slowly walking forward with anger on his face. "I won't ask you a second time."

Sarah swallowed, feeling a bit scared but refusing to show him that. "I was eating."

"And you think that you can just come here in MY garden to steal a fruit from MY Sacred Tree?" He loomed over her.

Sarah looked down on her feet. "I'm sorry. I don't know what came over me-"

"I know what did." He snatched the peach pit from her. "You just do not care about anyone's personal space. You are not allowed to be here."

"You're right." Sarah whimpered. "I shouldn't have touched the peach. I'm sorry. But I thought you said I was free to pretty much go where I wanted?"

"Are you really apologizing or are you just trying to get out of trouble?" He tossed the peach pit up and down in his gloved hand.

Sarah was so tired of arguing with him. "Look, everything I do is wrong, you keep getting upset at me for things that I didn't know was bad! You have every right to be mad at me for eating the peach but not for just wandering here. How was I supposed to know?"

Jareth growled. She was right, but he didn't want to admit it. Which in turn, made him MORE angry at her. It had been so long since someone had the gall to tell him what to do. It didn't matter if he was right or not, he was the king and his word was law.

"You know what?" He pointed at her. "You are here under MY hospitality!"

Sarah stood a little taller, hands on her hips. His eyes were filled with such loathing for her and she could say that she felt the same thing! If wishing didn't give her so much trouble, she'd wish that she had never met someone as terribly mannered and with such a bad attitude as HIM!

"You know, you're a spoiled BRAT!" Sarah yelled.

"Oh, I'M the brat?!" Jareth asked, incredulous. "Says the one who complains about how everything is unfair and wishes her brother away even though he did absolutely NOTHING wrong and was just a baby!" He tangled his fingers in his hair, as if to pull it out.

"I WAS SIXTEEN!" Sarah rolled her eyes. "You're a grown man who kicks goblins to the bog when he gets mad!"

"At least I have a basis for comparison!" He slammed his hands on the table and sat up.

"Seriously? You're just being dramatic, calm down!" She made a face to mock him. _"Oh look at me tra la la!"_

"HOW DARE YOU MOCK ME YOU LITTLE-"

"LITTLE WHAT?" Sarah roared at him. "What? Can't take insults? Been living alone too long? No wonder no one wants to be around you, you probably just insult them at every step and treat them like garbage, don't you?"

This was too much for him to take. "Get. Out."

Sarah put her hands on her hips. "Or what, Goblin King?"

Jareth made fists with his hands, his breathing just as rapid but much quieter.

Just when Sarah was about to make some sassy remark, he turned around and she stopped in her tracks.

His normally blue eyes were dilated to the point where all she could see were his pupils. He barred his teeth in a growl as she paced backwards.

"THIS IS MY CASTLE AND IF I TELL YOU TO LEAVE, THEN YOU BETTER DO IT!"

When his eyes focused, he realized that Sarah was gone.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The dialogue at the end of them arguing was actually the first scene I wrote for this story and set the tone for it, in case anyone was curious.


	6. Should You Need Us

And ran.

And ran.

She didn't know where she was going or what was happening, all she knew was that he scared her. The way he looked at her with large eyes and his teeth barred reminded her of a wolf's teeth.

She was getting out of breath so she slowed down. She realized that her aimless wandering lead her to somewhere dark and dreary.

"Oh boy." She looked up and around. The trees were tall, with leaves covering so much area that it was almost pitch black. It was so dark and creepy, and she couldn't even see how the heck she had gotten here. Where was the path she was on? Did she even take a path?

She looked out into the trees. "Hello? Hoggle? Sir Didymus? Ludo?"

She didn't know why she would think that they would hear her. Of course they wouldn't, she had shut the door on them.

Sarah wrapped her arms around herself, anxiety and fear starting to set in. She had nothing on her but the clothes on her back. What if someone or something attacked her?

Damn her. Jareth had no right to speak to her the way that he did, but if she was smarter, then she should have kept her temper down and not thrown insults at him. She could have stood up to him in a way that wouldn't have made him be so angry.

Now what? Should she go back to the castle? What then? Would Jareth throw her in a dungeon? He didn't seem like he would but it wasn't like she knew him well or at all besides the fact that he got mad pretty often.

"Hoggle?" She called again.

There was a bit of rustling. Her eyes were still adjusting to the darkness.

The trees parted, a creature coming towards her.

Sarah froze in place.

There was a creature in front of her that was the size of an elephant. It resembled a very hairy spider but with a million legs and each leg had a sharp, pointed end as a claw that could skewer her easily.

Its beady, glowing eyes looked down at Sarah with interest. She was frozen in fear, unable to move at such a disturbing creature.

It lowered itself, and she felt a sort of sucking motion at her hair. She realized that it was smelling her. It opened its mouth and she could see saliva coating around two enormous fangs the size of her arms in preparation to devour her.

It got her to snap out of her frozen state.

She ran.

Sarah was not the fastest person, but she was very quick at thinking. She dove under bushes, around trees, anywhere so that she could get away from that monster. She heard it using its claws cutting through the trees to look for her. And it didn't help that she was wearing a dress and impractical shoes either!

Sarah heard a rip from her side. One of the claw/leg things had gotten stuck in her dress and was tearing it!

Sarah tried to yank the dress away but couldn't. She watched in horror as another giant claw came down to strike her.

She covered herself with her arms and closed her eyes, knowing that it was futile, bracing herself to become a monster's meal.

"HALT!"

That was NOT the sound she expected the monster to make.

In fact it sounded like...

...Jareth?

She opened her eyes and saw him in front of her, shielding her from the monster. With wings?

Yes, those were wings. They reminded her of his barn owl wings but larger. He looked like a guardian angel, protecting her from any kind of harm. His wings were glowing, giving him a look of majesty and power.

His wings were spread so widely that she almost couldn't see the monster. In the dark, he alone illuminated the surrounding area. He was shirtless, allowing her to see the muscles on his back from where his wings protruded from.

"I command you, as your king, to leave her alone." Jareth's came in low and deep, as if it was hitting her very soul. "Let her go."

Sarah heard a very high, very sharp hissing sound coming from the monster. It backed up very slightly.

Jareth wasn't buying it. "Leave." He commanded once more.

Faster than Sarah could have comprehended in real time, the monster threw a claw at Sarah. Jareth twisted his body, enveloping his arms around Sarah, pulling her towards him. His wings enveloped them in a sort of protective cocoon.

Then The Goblin King screamed.

Sarah looked up at the agony on his face, twisted with utter horror and terror. Looking down, she felt her stomach turn at seeing the claw pierce through his wings, feathers lost and the sound of bones breaking. The claw reaches far enough to give a nasty scrape on his side.

Jareth, still holding onto Sarah, twisted his whole body and wings. The monster didn't expect such force and yelled in pain as Jareth twisted so hard that the claw detached from it, still stuck in Jareth's wing.

He beat his wings and ascended into the bright sky, the broken claw unceremoniously falling back into the forest. The monster could be seen running away, the leaves of the trees vibrating in the direction of its path.

If Sarah hadn't felt such shock over the situation, she would have been awed at the sight of the golden sun shining upon the flowers and beautiful plant life of the kingdom.

Jareth's breath was slowing. His grip on her was still strong but he was weak and in pain. His wings were trying to beat as hard as they could but were directionless.

Sarah could tell he was also in shock and may not be thinking clearly. "Over there, to your left." She said gently, guiding him. "There's a hilltop."

Jareth's eyes were glazed over but did as she told. He flew down to the hilltop, his feet gently touching the grass. Once Sarah's feet were firmly on the earth, his eyes rolled into the back of his head and he collapsed on the ground.

Sarah tried to catch him, but she wasn't expecting how heavy he was. For someone as lithe and lean as he was, he sure had more muscle weight than one would have thought. He practically fell on top of her before rolling onto the ground.

His eyes were still closed. He gave a few coughs before curling up in a fetal position, seemingly asleep.

Sarah was utterly confused. She had thought he was going to vaporize her when they were by that peach tree. He not only did not vaporize her, he came to save her, putting himself in harm's way for her sake. He was even delicate with her as he set her down before rolling over in exhaustion.

She pushed his body so that he was laying on his side and not face down, letting him breathe and to keep the weight off of his injured wing, which was still spread out. Sarah already felt sorry for him as anyone would feel for an injured person but knowing that he saved her life and to see such a majestic being in such a state made her heart break.

She put a hand on his shoulder, not quite sure about touching his bare skin but needing to rouse him. "Jareth? Hey, you have to get up."

All she got was a tired and annoyed grunt from him. She took off her cloak and put it around him to keep him warm.

"Please?" She moved his hair from his face so that she could look into his eyes. He bit his bottom lip, a little whimper escaping from his lips.

Sarah instinctively caressed his hair a bit, trying to give him a sense of comfort. His head turned to her automatically, almost as if he was craving for her touch. She smiled a little, remembering how Toby used to do the same thing when she comforted him.

"Jareth, I can't carry you back. You have to get up." She said again, just as gently. "I'll help you get there, okay?"

Jareth's eyes opened just a crack. His eyes darted to her hand in his hair, making his eyebrows furrow a bit.

Sarah quickly removed her hand from his hair, her cheeks reddening. What was she thinking, touching him like that? Maybe he hated to be touched or maybe he just hated her or maybe he thought she was stupid or maybe-

"Sarah?" He croaked out.

Sarah tried to not blush so hard. "Yeah?"

Without another word, he took her hand and grasped it tightly.

Sarah held his hand back, holding it tightly in comfort. His eyes looked very soft and tired as he gazed upon her face. She was about to ask him how he was feeling when she heard some commotions around her.

She looked around, realizing that they were at the gates in front of the castle, goblins giving them weird looks.

Jareth let go of her hand.

Oh.

He was only holding onto her to transport them together. Not because he wanted to actually touch her.

Wait, why did she feel disappointed? It wasn't like she cared for him any more than she would a stranger.

At least that's what she told herself.

She shook her head to clear it. This was not the time for such contemplations. She turned to the goblins. "The King is hurt! I need help to move him inside!"

The goblins bumbled around, a few ran around trying to find something to move him in like a bed. Most of them were confused at the sight of him and his wings.

"He has a wing when he's fae!" One yelled. "Ahh!"

"No, he has two wings!" Another yelled. "Like a chicken!"

"But he doesn't look like a chicken."

"Maybe he's secretly a chicken. Kinda like how he's secretly an owl sometimes!"

"Maybe he STOLE the chicken wings."

"I want a chicken wing!"

"To eat or to fly with?"

"Why not both?"

"I don't think we should eat his wings though."

"Wings aren't even tasty! The best part of the chicken is the thigh!"

"I DON'T LIKE EATING CHICKENS. CHICKENS ARE FRIENDS, NOT FOOD."

Sarah groaned. It was bad enough with humans but even worse with goblins in a time of crisis.

"Sarah!"

Sarah looked in front and saw Hoggle, Ludo, Sir Didymus, and Ambrosias. They gasped at seeing Sarah's clothes all tattered and their eyes bugged at seeing Jareth's wings.

"Are ya hurt?" Hoggle asked her.

"My Lady!" Sir Didymus called out. "I heard thy cry for help! It is my duty as a knight to be at the aid of those who need-"

"Stop talking." Jareth groaned. He shivered a bit, clutching Sarah's cloak closer to his body for warmth.

Sarah had an idea. "Ludo, do you think you can carry him?"

"Me?" Ludo looked unsure about carrying Jareth. Sarah couldn't blame him, Jareth wasn't exactly the nicest person, to say the least.

Hoggle made a face and huffed a few words that sounded like profanity.

"Please, for me." Sarah begged them. "I can't help him alone."

At this, all three friends thought back to when they said _"should you need us..."_

Well, this if there was a time she needed them, it was now.

Hoggle undid his own cloak and gave it to Jareth, pressing it to his wound. Sir Didymus had some rope to bind it all together.

Ludo lowered himself and carefully put a hand under Jareth's back. Jareth shook in pain but otherwise betrayed nothing in his face. The gentle giant cradled him as carefully as he could.

When they got inside, Ludo set the king down gently on the bed. Sarah thanked her friends, promising to catch up later.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yes, he has wings! My friend Maire Grey (who is on FFN and you should definitely check out her stories) inspired me with this idea. The whole "chickens are friends, not food" was absolutely inspired by Finding Nemo in the "Fish are friends, not food" scene.


	7. I Move the Stars For No One

Sarah couldn't help but be awed at how beautiful he was. Even in this state, he was very regal. It almost made her jealous. She could see that even if he was lean, he was quite strong and muscular. The body of a dancer. That's what her mother would say.

A few creatures helped Sarah to heal the king. Splinters were placed on his wings and bandages on his wound. She stayed by his side, feeling like she was indebted to him after he rescued her.

A few hours later, she was dabbing his forehead with a wet cloth. They had checked for infections, and everything looked fine. Nevertheless, he had symptoms of a fever.

"I think he did too much magic. And in a short time." Hoggle told her. He was the gardener, but was also at healing. There was no official castle physician as Jareth hated being cared for by others.

Sarah gave a tired nod. "Will be okay?"

"He'll be fine, that rat always pulls through." He reassured her. "I's not sure about them wings though. He'll live but who knows about being able to fly with them. I've never seen him use them before in his fae form."

Sarah resisted the urge to touch the feathers. They were absolutely beautiful. "Do the other fae have them too?"

"I thinks so," Hoggle thought about it. "But I never cared to know."

Sarah nodded, tucking the blanket around the King. "I feel bad."

"Nah uh!" Hoggle put his hands on his hips, glaring. "He deserved it."

"You don't even know what happened!" Sarah snapped at Hoggle. "He saved my life."

"Because he should have, don't be makin' excuses for 'im!" Hoggle rolled his eyes.

"I'm not." Sarah stood up, fire in her eyes. "I know that he's a jerk, that he needs to stop being so angry. But I will give him credit where it's due."

"Did you forget that he called us traitors? For helping you?" Hoggle huffed. "We weren't allowed to call ya, to be your friend. He was awful to us."

Sarah stopped and paled. "Did he…"

She swallowed, mouthing the words, looking at Jareth to make sure that he was still asleep. "Did he hurt you?" She whispered.

"What? No." Hoggle shook his head. "Nuthin' like that. Just gave us more hours of work and allowed the goblins to annoy us. More than usual anyway. We did do work in repairing the city but nah he didn't hurt us."

Sarah sighed. She felt really bad. She got to Hoggle's height. "I'm so sorry. If I never made a stupid wish… if I never did that then you wouldn't have gotten in such trouble."

"It's fine, girly." He patted her hand. "It was better that you stayed safe. I dunno about now though. Has he been nice to ya?"

Sarah snorted. "Well, he's been… mostly decent. A right jerk but he gave me a beautiful room. What's his deal anyway?"

Hoggle opened his mouth but then they heard a groan from Jareth.

"Water, please." he croaked, sitting up.

Sarah quickly got the jug of water and held it to Jareth's lips. He took it away from her and drank. "I can do it myself."

Sarah didn't hide her contempt for him, folding her arms and glaring at him.

He set the jug down, ignoring her attitude. "Higspot-"

"Hoggle." Hoggle and Sarah corrected him at the same time.

"Please tell the cook to give me simple soup for my next meal. I'm quite tired." He wrapped the blanket around him better. "And you are dismissed."

Hoggle didn't argue. If he was told to leave Jareth then he would.

Sarah took his hand and they started to walk out.

"Where are you going?" Jareth called, his voice stronger now. "I only dismissed Hugpie."

"Hoggle." Hoggle mumbled to himself.

Sarah sighed. She had half a mind to yell at Jareth again, to stop telling her what to do but she was tired of fighting him. She still will not yield to him, but sometimes you just had to pick some battles. She smiled at Hoggle and squeezed his hand, reassuring him that she would be alright.

Hoggle reluctantly let go of her hand. "Sarah, if ya need me or any of us…"

"I will call." She said to him. "I'll meet you for dinner?"

"I would like that." He smiled. "Meet ya at yer room with Didymus and Ludo and Ambrosias?"

Sarah nodded. "See you then."

Hoggle left, and she closed the door. She turned around, a bit nervous at seeing Jareth propped up on his bed. To see him shirtless was absolutely unnerving. She hated how he was the most good looking man she had ever seen, that she had to force herself to look at his face and not the rest of his body. It wasn't like she hadn't been in relationships before, she absolutely was not one to just throw herself at a man and be totally entranced but Jareth almost did, even though she wanted to chuck a chair at him most of the time.

Jareth let out a long exhale. "I never kept your friends from you."

Whatever it was that she was expecting him to say, this was not one of the things she had been expecting.

"You didn't?" She asked, not quite sure of what to say.

"No." He confirmed. "In fact, I brought them to see you this morning, because I know you'd miss them. I just told them that they couldn't speak to you."

Sarah frowned. "But you just said-"

"I cannot control that." He interrupted her. "I can't open the portal for them to speak to you. Because I had no power over you."

"You called them traitors." It was more of a question than a statement.

"Well, they were. That's the definition of someone who goes against their king and sovereign." He shrugged.

Sarah paused for a moment. "I suppose you're right."

"Perhaps." Was all he said but a victorious smile was on his face.

That smile made her want to tape his lips shut. If there was one thing she couldn't stand, it was cocky attitudes. She was like that herself as a teen and boy did she hate it. "You realize that admitting your mistakes and being a better person is the adult thing to do, right? I admitted every single time I was wrong, including when I ate the peach. I really am sorry about that, but that doesn't mean that I'm going to ignore that you were way off in your anger towards me."

He didn't say anything. But his smile faded and his eyes looked a bit faraway, as if he was thinking.

When Sarah thought he wasn't going to say anything, he finally spoke. "The reason I got angry at you when you ate the peach wasn't because I was being possessive over my food."

He fiddled with his fingers. He never told anyone this before, never said it out loud. "That peach tree is planted over a grave of the first child that was wished away to me. He was sick and he died in my arms."

Sarah put a hand on her heart. "Oh my…"

"That peach tree is enchanted." Jareth continued on. Now that he was talking, he couldn't stop. "The peach that you were given on your Run is from that tree, it's supposed to give one their most desired fantasy. I had not expected you to go there, or for its pull to be so strong for you."

He took a deep, deep breath. His eyes closed. "I-I'm sorry. You were right, that I had no right to be upset at you."

Wow. The Goblin King, apologizing?

Sarah walked closer, sitting on a chair next to him. "Thank you. I really appreciate the apology."

Jareth looked at her face. It had been a long time since he had received real kindness from someone. Not because they were scared of him. Or found him amusing. Or rich. Or entertaining. Just… a connection for no reason at all.

Sarah held her hand out. "Should we start over? I would rather that we get along since I'm going to be staying Underground."

Jareth took her hand. But instead of shaking it as she had expected him to, he kissed her knuckles like a gentleman.

Sarah blushed, not expecting that.

Jareth smirked a little at her blush. "I think that is a lovely idea."

Sarah sighed in relief. "Will you be alright? I'm not sure how to help you with the - the -"

She waved at the wings.

"They will be fine." He looked at them. "The feathers are lost, but I will take care of them. There isn't anything you can do to help further my healing. It's just not the most comfortable to sleep with them out, so I will retract them after you leave. Thank you for taking me back here when you could have left me."

Sarah realized that she was still holding his hand so she squeezed it gently. "You saved my life. Of course I had to take you back safely. Thank you for that, I know that I drive you crazy. I wasn't expecting you to actually follow me."

He looked at her, a sad look in his eyes that surprised her. "I am many things but I am not someone who would let an innocent die." He looked away, hurt. "Especially when it was my fault. I know that I haven't been warm, but I'm not evil."

Sarah felt bad for saying that now. She wanted to kick herself. "Jareth-"

"You are dismissed." He pulled a blanket over him. "Please, I need rest."

Sarah looked at him sadly. "Okay. Sleep well."

When she closed the door, Jareth looked out his window where the moon was.

When she had run away, he had a mind to let her go. And he would have, if he wasn't worried about the Dark Forest. Dangerous things lived in there, and the thought of someone dying because of a petty argument from him was too much. He may be selfish, he may not feel much guilt, but death by his own hand was too much to bear.

And even worse if it was Sarah who may have died. Something felt painful to him at the thought of her being lost forever.

When he told her that he would be fine, he wasn't completely telling the truth. His wings around not grow back. They were too damaged and if he allowed them to be where they were, they would continue to die and rot, possibly killing him too.

Getting up with difficulty, he grabbed an extremely sharp blade. He stuck the blade in the fire, all while drinking wine. To dull the pain.

He found his shirt on his chair and put a part of the cloth into his mouth, biting down.

He took the hot blade to his back and seared off his bad wing.

He screamed, burying his face into his bed.

For the first time, he felt like he deserved what he got.

In the past, he would have been angry at Sarah for running away. For getting a part of himself taken away

This was more than just his wing, it was a part of who he was. He would no longer be able to fly as an owl either. No more Aboveground trips except for taking children. No more feeling the wind in his wings as he flew through the sky. No more feeling that solitude that he felt when it was just him and the clouds.

And for the first time in years, he cried. He cried until he fell asleep.


	8. Barely Even Friends

The next day, Sarah and her friends had breakfast and lunch together. No word from Jareth at all in asking her to meet with her.

Sarah tied her hair up in a bandana, with her friends at the library. "There's so many amazing books here!"

"Quite, My Lady." Sir Didymus held one such book. "And all are in quite good condition. His Majesty has a large collection."

"Too bad these aren't in any kind of order." She looked at the books. These are put in the most random of orders but obviously taken care of. "Where does he get some of these books from?"

Hoggle shrugged. "Who knows, who cares."

Sarah rolled her eyes. "Well, how did he become king? I mean you live in this kingdom, shouldn't you know about him?"

Ludo shrugged and went back to playing marbles with Evie. Or at least it seemed like that, Sarah wasn't sure since it looked more like they were just rolling them around.

A few other goblins were there, as they were quite taken by Sarah. They enjoyed her warmth and her softness, in stark contrast to their king. They were also curious, since she had been the king's nemesis but had saved him the day before.

"The High Queen is the one who decides who becomes monarchs, My Lady." Sir Didymus answered for her. "He has been king for as long as any of us can remember, for only a few types creatures are immortal in the Underground. Creatures like the fae like him or elves."

"How old is Jareth? He must be old. Who was king before him?" She looked at each book and wrote notes about what types of books they seem to be, so that she could organize them later.

"Stop askin' questions about that rat." Hoggle grumbled. His deep dislike for Jareth was not helping Sarah at all. "Plus he dun't like talkin' about his past. He gets mad whenever someone does."

"Okay okay." Sarah sighed. "I get it, you don't want to talk about it."

She was just so curious, but it was probably better not to ask anyone right now.

"So many wonderful books to read." She thumbed through a few of them, taking them with her.

They went to Hoggle's hut. Ludo was a bit too big for it (Hoggle was a dwarf after all), so they stayed outside most of the time. Sarah and Hoggle baked some cookies together, Sir Didymus spinning insane stories.

Sarah told Hoggle about what Jareth said, about how he wasn't the one who stopped them from talking to her.

"He's still a rat." Hoggle mumbled.

"I know, I'm not excusing his behavior." Sarah mixed the frosting, tasting it. "But I refuse to stoop low and to blame him for things that he didn't do. That would be dishonest. It's called taking the high road."

"Why does you even care?" Hoggle put his dishrag down and put his hand on his hips, staring up at Sarah. "He's been so mean to us this whole time."

"I KNOW!" She yelled.

Hoggle stepped back, shocked. Sarah had whined, been annoyed, but had not yelled at him in anger before.

Sarah pinched the bridge of her nose. "I know." She said again softly. "I just… okay look, has he done anything that makes him irredeemable?"

"He sent us to the bog." Hoggle snorted.

"Yeah, but if he wanted us to go in, wouldn't he have?"

Hoggle thought about it for a moment. "Still dun't make it fine."

"No." Sarah agreed. "But don't you remember me? Do you think it was fine that I got you in trouble with him? That I wished Toby away angrily? That I complained the whole time?"

Hoggle shook his head. "No. But you are me friend. Ya can't make someone change, Sarah." Hoggle warned her, his face scrunched with worry. "You can't hope for someone to change."

"Trust me, I'm smarter than that." She promised him, a hint of bitterness in her voice. "I had ex boyfriends… friends… loved ones who have taught me that."

Hoggle felt sorry for her. "Girlie, I didn't mean ta make ya sad."

Sarah wiped a few tears away. "I know, and I don't expect to change Jareth. That's his choice. I just want to make the best of the situation. Tell me, how often does he actually spend time with anyone? Does he even have a friend? You're his gardener."

Hoggle understood what she was saying now. "No. He usually just tells people what to do for him, like to get stuff done. The closest thing to a friend is goblins."

"And we all know that goblins aren't exactly the easiest creatures to be friends with." She looked outside as a few were trying to ask for Sir Didymus to show his sword to them.

"I know what it's like to be loved. To have kindness. From friends like you, you know?" She held her hand in his. "Everyone deserves a second chance. Even Jareth. He's so lonely, that maybe if someone showed him kindness, but still stayed firm, then maybe he would be better. I think he's lonely, and maybe he forgot how to act with anyone. I wonder why he's isolated."

"Dunno." Hoggle didn't want to feel empathy for Jareth, but it was hard not to when Sarah did. She of all people experienced the worst of his wrath and had every reason to hate him. If she didn't, should he? "He never goes anywhere. Just sulks. He's a good king, he does what he can ta keep everyone safe and in line. There are other fae who live in this kingdom but no one wants to be around him for some reason. We just all kinda do our own thing."

"Hmm." Sarah thought a bit about him. "Well, I'm here now. Maybe I can be his friend."

She thought about their banter during dinner the night before. He was fun to actually talk to, when he wasn't being a conceited git. Ever since her time in the Labyrinth, she was much more kind and thoughtful of others. She still did not take ANYONE'S crap, but she felt like if she could be forgiven, then surely Jareth could. Especially if he's being a good king.

"Maybe." Hoggle got some food together in a basket. "If anyone can, it's you. I knows that you is very good at that stuff. Ya can get anyone to be ya friend, even grumpy ol' me. I guess I didn't have no friends until you, so maybe ya could be his first friend."

Sarah got the cookies and set them on a plate. "Well, thank you. I love being your friend too. I do miss everyone here. I really did need all of you."

* * *

Jareth woke up, realizing that he had been sleeping for most of the day. It was night time again, and he felt a longing to spread his wings and fly in his owl form. He tried to not break down again at the thought of his lost wings.

He had heard a ruckus outside earlier that day. When he looked out, he saw Sarah, her three companions, and a bunch of other subjects having fun in the gardens. He saw her dance and sang silly songs with them, even lecturing the goblins when one tried to eat a flower.

How he wished that he was there, and not here. He told himself that it was because he was bored but he knew that even that was not true.

It was so much more than that.

He heard a little knock on his door. "Jareth? May I come in?"

_Sarah?_

Now that was unexpected, but he wasn't going to say no. "Come in."

Sarah opened the door, a basket in her hand. "Hey, how are you feeling?"

Jareth pretended not to care too much about her presence. "Fine, thank you. I'm healing well, have been sleeping most of the day."

He wondered why she was there. He thought that she would rather not see him unless he called for her.

Sarah smiled for him. He was putting his tough guy act but the moment she smiled, she could see that he softened quite a bit. "Hoggle and I made cookies earlier. I made sure to save some for you."

She pulled the container of cookies out of the basket and gave it to him.

Jareth looked at them, beautifully decorated too. No one gave him presents unless they wanted something. Maybe Sarah was different? "Thank you. These look lovely."

He had a little nibble, instantly lighting up. "Oh my."

The way his eyes widened and the corners of his lips twitched just made Sarah want to melt. "I knew you'd like them!" She looked quite proud of herself.

He ate that one and another. "Whatever the recipe is, please give it to the chef."

Sarah said she would. She got out something else from the basket. "So I found this chess set while deep cleaning the library. None of my friends of goblins know how to play. I was wondering if you did? Maybe we can play a game?"

Jareth wasn't sure why in the world she was asking him to play a game with her. But before he could answer, she was setting up the board.

He found that she was an admirable opponent, as she had been when she was first in his land. He taught her some tricks and she to him.

"Ah!" She put her hands to her face in horror when he captured her queen. Again.

He shook his head. "Sarah, you really must pay attention."

"Those pesky knights." She mumbled, her nose scrunching in annoyance.

They played a few more games. Sarah yawned, quite tired.

"Go to sleep." He told her, feeling better than he had been in ages. "Thank you for playing with me.

"It was fun." Sarah agreed.

She packed her stuff up. She made sure that his bandage was on tight enough but also not too loose. She tried her hardest to not touch his bare skin, keeping as professional as she could even though she was blushing like crazy.

"Sarah?" He asked.

"Hmm?" She tucked the basket on her arm.

"Since you mentioned us starting over, let's try breakfast again. In the same dining hall."

"Sure, I'd like that. I mean, it's what friends do, spend time with each other, no?" Sarah answered, feeling her heart skip a beat. "I'll see you tomorrow then. Good night, Jareth."

"Good night, Sarah." He said back.

When she closed the door, he sat there for a while, thinking about her. And his situation.

Sometimes, the pain of being alone consumed him so deeply that he didn't care if he just wasted away. Hence the lack of a court physician. His goblins and kingdom would be fine.

He didn't think that his life was that worth it. No one needed him, and he was miserable. He had long given up on breaking his curse. What was the point, no one was going to truly love him anyway.

But these few days, even though he was so close to death, he felt the fire of life reignited in him. Sarah had brought back that flame, had made him worried for someone else.

And she had called him a friend.

He turned over, smiling at the thought of being her friend. Yes, he would very much like that indeed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Somehow I seem to like making them play chess together. I guess it's just something that I remember loving to play as a kid with my own brother, and it just seems really cute!


	9. I Need You, All of You

_Two weeks since Sarah's arrival_

Sarah had mentioned to her friends that she didn't get to have a birthday dinner with her family before she left. It made her sad, knowing that she wasn't even able to have a photo of them. She hoped that they were okay, wondering what they were doing.

At this, Hoggle decided that she should get her birthday dinner. Heck, forget a plain old dinner. She deserved a party!

Since Sarah was being busy in the library, he thought it was a good time to make it a surprise. Sir Didymus had the job of distracting her, which was easy enough as he loved to talk and tell stories. Evie was also with them, following Sarah around like an adoring little sister.

Hoggle decided to host the party at his home in his own gardens. Sarah liked to be by nature and that way, Ludo wouldn't have to crouch down so low in his house.

He walked outside, holding the cake on a plate and screamed.

The goblins had ruined EVERYTHING.

All the decorations were torn. Everything was a mess and the chairs and mats were out of place!

"THE LOT OF YA!" Hoggle grabbed a broom and hit the nearest goblin, making the little guy giggle. Now he understood why Jareth kicked goblins sometimes. "YA RUINED EVERYTHING!"

"But, party!" One goblin said.

"There ain't no party if you idiots keep on ruinin' every little thing!" He threw his hands in the air once he set the cake back down in his house. "I canna trust ANYONE to do a SIMPLE thing like NOT ruining Sarah's party!"

_"RAAAAAAAWR!"_

"Eh?" Hoggle turned around at the sound. He went to the back door and gasped.

Ludo was being tied upside down, much like how he was when Sarah first met him. All the goblins were laughing and poking at him.

"HEY!" Hoggle smacked them with his broom. He had a mind to get his fairy spray on them. "WHAT ARE YA DOIN'? UNHAND LUDO!"

The goblins snickered. Hoggle realized that there were way more of them than him.

_Uh oh._

"AHHH!" Hoggle ran as fast as he could away from the goblins. "STAY AWAY YA STINKIN' DEVILS!"

He ran so fast that he collided into something.

Or rather, someone.

He landed on his butt and looked forward to see a pair of shiny, black boots.

 _Crap_.

Jareth raised an eyebrow at the dwarf, hands on his hips. Just as he was about to ask, a horde of goblins caught up to them.

He looked at his goblins. "Care to tell me why Hamburger-"

"Hoggle." Hoggle muttered.

"-crashed into me and is currently sitting in a patch of dirt on his behind?" Jareth crossed his arms.

The goblins looked unsure of what to say.

"Well?" Jareth said louder. "I haven't got all day, you know."

"We was chasing him." One of them said.

"Why?"

"For fun?" Another offered hopefully.

The Goblin King pinched the bridge of his nose. "I should have known better than to ask you. Higdle, why were you running?"

Hoggle got up and brushed the dirt off of his bottom. "They was chasin' me, Yer Majesty."

"Oh? Why?"

"Because I gots mad at them!" He turned to the goblins. "Ya'll better let down Ludo right now! And clean up the mess ya'll made! I was planning a perfect surprise party for Sarah."

"Party?" Jareth looked interested in this bit of information. "For what?"

Hoggle looked nervous. He knew that Jareth was being nice to Sarah, and that she was a pretty lady who caught his eye but considering how ornery he could be, he wasn't sure what Jareth would think.

"I'm waiting." Jareth prompted him.

"For her birthday." Hoggle said quietly. "I was makin' a cake and some food for her. Maybe we could play games if she wants ta. She says she was sad that she couldn't be with her family because they was gonna have a dinner for her and she never got to have that."

Jareth got quiet. He turned around. He wondered why she never told him that. Then again, why would she? Who would want to really associate themselves with him with things of their heart?

Of course, as Goblin King, he knew the desires of the Runners. But not because he wanted to or because they wanted to. No one wanted to be close to him. And that was just as well.

With a swish of his cape, he turned back around and started to walk to Hoggle's house.

"Where are ya goin'?" Hoggle ran to catch up to him, sputtering when Jareth's cape flapped in his face.

"To help you clean up. You have a party to prepare for and Ludo to save, don't you?"

* * *

"What are you guys planning?" Sarah laughed, blind folded and being lead by Ludo.

"My Lady, patience is a virtue!" Sir Didymus reminded her.

"Shut yer face, Didymus. No one cares." Hoggle grumbled. "Don't need ya to be all preachy."

"Almost there!" Evie hopped alongside all of them. "Lady will love it!"

When they got to Hoggle's house, Sarah gasped at seeing the _"Happy Birthday Sarah"_ sign hanging on the side of the house for her.

She also noticed that the letters were sparkling with glitter.

"Surprise!" The goblins shouted.

Hoggle breathed a sigh of relief that nothing was awry. Seems that Jareth telling them that he would not just dunk them in the bog but leave them there for a month was enough to scare them.

"Oh, this is wonderful!" Sarah saw the cake and was so very touched.

"Ya said that you didn't get ta have dinner with yer family." Hoggle said. "Well, we ain't yer mom, dad, stepmom, stepdad, and brother, but we can be a family too."

Sarah hugged Hoggle. "Thank you. Thank you so much."

She hugged Ludo and Sir Didymus too.

They had so much fun. They played games like tying a doughnut on the string and attempting to eat it without their hands, a bit of a scavenger hunt, making boats out of leaves, egg and spoon race, and a bunch of minute-to-win-it games.

Aside from not having her family there, it was the best birthday she ever had.

She walked back to the castle. Yes, it was an almost perfect birthday.

Almost.

* * *

Jareth was reading and snacking on some cut up fruits in the sitting room. He reached for another and realized that the plate was gone.

He looked to the side to see none other than Sarah, holding the plate. She grinned, picking one up and eating it. She sat next to him and crossed one leg over the other, relaxed.

"How rude. You know, some people would consider stealing from the king treason." He smiled.

Sarah set the plate back between them. "What kind of fruit was that? It kind of reminds me of an apple and a pear. But sweeter."

"I can get more of them if you'd like." He offered to her. "Is there anything I can help you with?"

Sarah rolled her eyes. "You really have to stop assuming that anyone who comes to spend with you just wants something. You know that it is possible for people to spend time with someone else just because they want to, right? And no, not just for entertainment either."

"I beg to differ." Jareth said, a bit terse. "It's all I've known."

The room got deathly quiet. He didn't elaborate on his past, and Sarah didn't push it.

"Jareth?" She turned back to him. "Thanks for helping Hoggle with cleaning up the Goblins' messes and freeing Ludo and setting things up. But I'm wondering, why didn't you come to the party today?"

He scoffed. "So that's why you came, you did want something from me."

Sarah resisted the urge to snap at him. Why did he always have to act so cold? "No, it's because we said that we'd be friends. It was a birthday party for me, I would have liked for you to be there."

"No, you were the one who said that you were my friend. Not the other way around." He looked back at his book but he really wasn't reading it. He just needed an excuse to not look at her face.

Sarah deflated. "So, you don't consider yourself my friend then? That hurts you know."

She got up and walked to the door. She looked back at him. "I don't know why you derive pleasure out of saying these things to people. I didn't pity you before, but now I do. This is why you're alone. Because you don't let anyone get close to you. I don't know if you're scared, if you're just a natural jerk, or if you're playing hard to get. But I'm done. I don't play games, Jareth. Good night."

When she closed the door (and rather loudly), Jareth was stunned.

She didn't come crawling to him, begging. She didn't try to bash his head either. She just was honest about how she felt. She wasn't desperate for his attention, even if she wanted it.

This wasn't something that was trivial or a fantasy like she had when she was a teen. She wanted to truly know him.

Damn it. He owed her an apology.

Sarah changed into her nightgown and sat in front of her vanity. Seriously, why was he like this? All she wanted to do was to be his friend. Why did she even care? He could be kind and considerate but then he would go around and push her away again.

She grabbed her hair brush, angrily brushing out the knots. "Stupid. Me. Why. Do. I. Even. TRY?!"

She said each word with each stroke. Angry, hot tears burned her cheeks as she brushed through.

* _knock knock knock_ * "Sarah?"

"Oh for heaven's sake!" She threw her brush down and went to the door and yanked it open.

Jareth opened his mouth but she beat him to it. "What? You need something? After all, why else would you come here?"

Jareth's eyes narrowed at hearing her mirror his words from earlier to mock him. His lips tightened and he lifted a finger up, pointing at her accusingly.

Sarah grabbed his hand and pushed it aside, surprising him. No one dared to do that to him. "Don't you dare get angry at me for that. I won't stand for hypocrisy."

He just glared at her, not saying a word.

Sarah opened her arms and let them fall at her sides. "Fine."

She didn't close the door but went back to her vanity, continuing to brush her hair. She told herself that she didn't close the door because she wanted to spite him by letting him see her brush her hair and ignoring him. The truth was, she wanted him to be there. To apologize. To be her friend.

She was just too proud to say so.

Jareth took a step in, no longer glaring. He saw tears down her cheeks and felt his heart break at seeing them. They were all his fault. He had caused her to be so hurt. And on a day where she was supposed to feel happy.

He sat down next to her, a package in his hand.

Sarah couldn't take it anymore. She put the brush down and folded her arms. "What?"

Jareth hated apologizing. But, if he was going to be on the path to be better, just as Sarah had said that she had when she wished Toby away, then he needed to take responsibility. "You were right. I was pushing you away. And I shouldn't have. Or to be as unkind and ungentlemanly as I had been. I'm sorry."

He took another deep breath. "I didn't go to the party because I had assumed that no one wanted me there. Including yourself. And so, when you asked why I wasn't there, I didn't want you to pity me. To pity my loneliness and self isolation."

Sarah softened. She wanted nothing more than to give him a hug.

"I know now that you didn't pity me. That you are real and true. And for that, I am most grateful." He pushed the little package to her. "I wasn't sure what to give you, considering how I told you that really, anything in the castle you are free to use or to explore. That I will provide anything you need or want. But I thought that you may want this."

Sarah looked at the mostly plain package. It had traces of glitter on it, making her smile at seeing Jareth's personal touch on it.

She opened it and saw two things. A book and a little monster doll.

She looked at the book. It looked very old but in very good condition. "Oh, Jareth…"

"A first edition of Jane Eyre." He loved her beautiful smile. It made him feel like everything he did was worth it. She had told him that it was one of her favorite books.

She gently touched the cover. "It's beautiful. Thank you." She picked up the monster doll, not quite understanding why she had it.

He chuckled. "No, I do not think that you are a child. I am very much aware that you have become a grown woman. And a very beautiful one at that."

Sarah blushed. After all, he was a grown man. And a very handsome one at that.

And his tight pants absolutely confirmed that he was indeed a grown man.

He touched the little doll, his eyes glazed in memory. "When you first came here, I took care of your brother. I don't get very many runners especially as of late. So he was special to me, a sweet boy. I gave him this doll while he was in my care. I thought that you may want a piece of him with you."

Sarah looked at the doll, holding it to her chest and even pressing her lips to it, tears in her eyes. Oh how she missed Toby so much.

Jareth was surprised when she threw her arms around his neck. "Thank you. I can't tell you how much that means to me." She buried her face in his neck, still crying.

Jareth slowly brought his hands up to hold around her. Good lord, it had been so long since anyone held him. It just felt so nice to sit like this. He brought his hand up and rubbed her back. No one ever held him when he cried since he was a small child and he never held anyone who cried either. "You're very welcome, Precious."

He didn't let go until she did. She wiped her tears. "Precious?"

"Well, you are." He said, the corner of his mouth tilting up.

Sarah couldn't take it. She looked to the side and blushed, her cheeks heating up. "Thanks. I like that, actually."

Jareth beamed. "Then I shall keep calling you that."

She laughed and rubbed her eyes a bit.

Jareth took that as his cue. "I will retire now. I thank you for your patience with me, and also your truthfulness for whenever I act less than kind."

Sarah nodded, feeling optimistic about where their friendship was going. "Yeah, I should sleep too. Goodnight, Jareth."

"Good night, Precious."


	10. Everything I've Done, I've Done For You

_Three weeks since Sarah's arrival_

Sarah got into a regular routine of helping organize the books and then helping Hoggle in the gardens, doing reading and whatever was useful in the castle to earn her keep. She shared at least one meal a day with Jareth and sometimes would accompany him in his walks and whatnot. Their conversations turned from superficial to deep, talking about different ideas and opinions of things. As they spent quite a bit of time together, they got to know each other very well. For Jareth, most of his past relationships with lovers and friends were superficial anyway, so this was a nice change.

Sarah had many questions, but sometimes, Jareth didn't want to answer them. So she told him that if he didn't want to tell her anything, he didn't have to.

On one such day, he admitted to her something that he didn't tell anyone else. He had never said it out loud since that fateful day.

"You're under a curse?" Sarah thought that sounded insane. Then again, she was literally living in a magical land. "And you can't leave your own kingdom?"

"Yes." He said. "It's why I cannot see others of my kind. I am the guardian of the two worlds. Before, humans and magical creatures used to mingle. Now, not so much. Although that was before I became king. Someone else had that unfortunate task and set up all these rules. I can go around my kingdom, but I cannot be seen by my fae or other humanoid subjects, to make it simple for you. They cannot see me either. I have been king for about a hundred years so I don't get that many runners either as humans have moved away from the belief of magic."

"Do you spend time with humans?" She tucked her hand higher on his arm as they walked through the gardens.

"I can't." He said sadly. "Not unless they are runners or are wished away. Even then, they are all sent elsewhere after their time is over. I never get adults actually. The legend has always said that it's children who are taken."

"Yeah, you said before that in the past it wasn't because the children were always unwanted. Sometimes, but usually it's because they're sick or something?"

"Correct." He confirmed.

"You said before, that it was self isolation." She looked at him, a question written on her face.

"Well, I had always isolated myself." He said dryly. "Not physically, but because I was a brat. I deserved what I got. I say self isolation because emotionally, I had always been isolated."

"Who cursed you?" Sarah looked at him with her large, beautiful green eyes. "And how do you break that curse?"

Jareth stopped walking and looked away from her in shame. How could he tell her that it was the most powerful person in the Underground and his own grandmother who cursed him? "I don't want to talk about that."

The pain was evident in his eyes.

Sarah walked in front, squeezing his arm. "Hey, it's okay. You don't have to talk about it. But it seems like it may help if it hurts that much."

"No, I don't want to." He said roughly, pulling his arm away from her.

Sarah shrank away a bit, taking a step back. Her face was bright red in embarrassment.

Jareth shook his head. "I apologize. I never talked about these things out loud."

He couldn't find the right words to express how kind she was to him, and how he appreciated the sincerity of her kindness.

"Really, it's okay." Sarah put her arm back in his, slowly and carefully. He accepted.. "Just know that I'm here for you, okay?"

He gave her a grateful smile. He changed the subject. "As you can see, this is why I am so isolated. But with time, I've been able to learn languages. Instruments. It's just a bit difficult when there's no one to listen to it."

"Do you play piano then?" She lit up.

"Why, yes. It's one of my favorite instruments. I haven't played it in weeks though."

Sarah thought of how she had been taking up the music room. "Oops."

"No fault of your own, Precious." He reassured her. "I just didn't feel like it and had preferred to rest."

"Well," Sarah looked at him hopefully. "I was wondering if you could maybe play for me?"

Jareth couldn't believe it, someone wanted to hear him play? "I never had an audience before."

Sarah took his hand and pulled him gently, beaming. "There's a first time for everything you know!"

Jareth laughed at her enthusiasm, entranced by her smile.

* * *

Sarah laid on her stomach on the couch as he played away.

He looked so concentrated, his fingers gliding along the black and white keys. The sun shone on his hair, framing it around him like a glorious crown. His low cut shirt showed his medallion, glimmering.

He may have been playing but he was like a dancer. The way his body moved so gracefully mesmerized her. She could watch him for hours. It was more than just getting the technical rhythms and notes right, he was feeling the emotions of every piece and letting it guide him.

He stopped for a bit and stood up.

"Hey, I was enjoying that." Sarah teased, sitting up.

Jareth shook his head. "Demanding, aren't we?"

She just smiled.

Jareth stretched a bit, wincing as he did so. Sarah went to his side immediately. "You stubborn man, how's your injury?"

Jareth waved it away. "I'm fine, it's just-"

He felt it hurting again.

Sarah had him sit down. "Take your shirt off. Let me see."

He rolled his eyes but did as she told. Otherwise, they would never stop arguing about it.

Sarah tried to look away from his chest. He was gorgeous and it took all she could to not slide her hands on his chest.

She looked at the wound. "Well, it's healing nicely. It may take a bit but -"

She stopped when she realized that something else was coming into focus.

His back.

"Jareth?" She looked at another wound on his back.

Jareth hissed, angry at himself. He hadn't told her about the wound on his back. He often had another cloth covering him or was just laying on the bed where she wouldn't see it.

"Why didn't you tell me about it?" She carefully touched it. "How did I miss it?"

Jareth didn't say anything.

"Jareth?" She walked back front. "Please."

He didn't want to tell her, but he couldn't help it. "My wings - or rather, just one wing - was damaged beyond repair. I cut if off myself."

Sarah looked devastated. She couldn't breathe.

Sarah covered her mouth in horror. "No no no. It's all my fault."

Jareth looked at her. "What?"

Sarah tried to not cry. "That means that you can't fly anymore, can't you?"

He was quiet. "No, I cannot."

"Even if you turn into an owl?"

"Correct."

She leaned against the chair, wiping her tears. "You hurt yourself. You saved me and hurt yourself in the process. And you lost your wings."

He had told her how much he loved to fly when she asked him about it. That it helped to take away his pain and make him feel free even if he was a prisoner.

Jareth reached forward and took her hands. "Shh, don't you talk like that."

It was a testament to his improvement as a person. That he did not place the blame on her.

"But I-" Sarah started to speak but he put a finger on her lips.

"I chose to help you." He reminded her.

"But I ran away." She sniffed.

"And I scared you. With my god awful temper. Which is still god awful." He admitted with a laugh.

Sarah was not amused. "That's like losing an arm or a leg."

He tipped her chin up to look at him.

Everything got quiet. But not deathly quiet. The kind of quiet that was full of something loving. Something kind. Something caring.

He intertwined his fingers with hers. "And for you, Precious, I would do it again to protect you."

The setting was perfect. They were alone in a beautiful room. Two attractive people who cared about one another. The sunlight even seemed to be encouraging them.

Sarah stood up a little taller. Jareth dipped his head just a little lower. Their eyes closing…

_"BAWK BAWK BAWK BAWK"_

"HEY COME BACK HERE YOU UGLY POULTRY! I WILL GRILL YOU AND EAT YOU!"

"CHICKENS ARE FRIENDS. NOT FOOD!"

Jareth and Sarah pulled apart, Sarah screaming as a chicken landed on her and decided to beat its wings against her.

Hoggle ran into the room with an iron skillet. "AHA NO YOU CAN'T HIDE- oh uhhhh."

He saw Jareth shirtless and Sarah pushing the damned bird from her. He skid to a stop and sputtered unintelligently.

"What is the meaning of this?!" Jareth yelled.

"She DESTROYED my vegetable garden!" Hoggle pointed at the chicken. "Stupid ugly thing!"

Sarah sighed. "And now I have chicken feathers all over me."

"No kill chicken!" Evie saw the poor chicken and took her out. "Keep her safe!"

Hoggle ran out as fast as they could before Jareth could murder them. Meanwhile, Sarah was laughing her head off at the chicken debris all over her.

Jareth couldn't help it. Her laugh was infectious. He laughed with her.

"I'm going to get cleaned up." She plucked a few off. "Umm, I'll see you later? I can check on your back again."

Jareth shook his head. "No, it's just still healing. It will be fine. I promise you."

Sarah nodded. "Okay. I'll see you for dinner tonight then?"

"Sounds wonderful. I shall see you then."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The loss of his wings was to show selflessness. That he had put his life on the line for her, and would do it again. He had been selfish. Had been cruel. But now he would sacrifice for her. Not just because it's the right thing to do, but because he cares so deeply about her.
> 
> I'm not done with the mention of his wings! We will see more of it and what happens. Something pivotal happens in the next few chapters!


	11. How You've Turned My World

Late at night, after everyone was asleep, Jareth stayed in the library. He was thinking about their near kiss. He cared about Sarah so much. He meant it when he said that he would have done it again for her.

He wanted to be close to her. To touch her. To feel her embrace as he passionately kissed those sweet lips of hers.

He never felt this way towards anyone before. This was more than just enjoying a kiss, it was something much deeper. Much more long lasting. He wanted to give her everything she wanted and more.

But he needed to remain a gentleman. So the closest thing he could do now was to be in the library where she often was. It made him feel closer to her without actually being near her physically. Yes, he was lonely. But he knew that this was not just that. He cared so deeply for her. Desired so much from her.

He looked at the piles and piles of books, lining every shelf. He had read nearly every book in here. Sarah said that she had found a collection of books in a hidden passageway. Clever girl.

He looked through the titles, still thinking about Sarah. One book seemed to call to him.

"What's this?" He picked it up.

It was called _"Laws of the Labyrinth."_

He had no idea that there was a guide to his labyrinth. Everything he knew was from his own experience or whatever magic that his grandmother had granted him, making him naturally know certain things and feel around with his magic.

He flipped through the pages. Yes, he knew about the 13 hours. Yes, he knew that children did not turn into goblins and that was only told to scare humans so that they would only wish a baby away as a last resort.

A section outlined an interesting topic, that sometimes adults do get wished away. Jareth had only been king for roughly 100 years, so he had not seen that many wished-aways as the human world reached the Industrial Revolution. Although he did get a surge of babies and other children during wars, especially World War II. That broke his heart.

For the adults, it said that they will live a much longer lifespan than humans would. By many, many times. However, they would not become immortal like fae and other magical creatures. That is, unless they bind themselves to an immortal. Not just in marriage, but in every way possible, down to their souls. The downside of this was that if one spouse died, the other would follow almost immediately.

"Interesting." Jareth muttered to himself. He turned the page and he saw something that surprised him.

_The Champion of the Labyrinth_

Well, this would have been useful to know back when Sarah beat him.

_"Should there be a Champion of the Labyrinth, the King or Queen will lose a significant amount of power for some time."_

This was true. He remembered being absolutely weak and it was difficult to do magic.

_The Champion of the Labyrinth is free to go to and from the Underground and Aboveground as he or she pleases. Even if the Champion is wished away, they have gained the right and power to walk away whenever they want._

Jareth snapped the book shut. He put a hand to his mouth and leaned against the wall.

This changes absolutely everything. If he had known this, he would have sent Sarah straight back the moment she came to his kingdom. That was how much he despised her at the time.

But things were different now. He felt tears welling up in his eyes as he slid down the wall, silently sobbing.

He stomped back to his room. Once he was in, he created a crystal and smashed it on the floor. "Is this enough torture for you, Grandmother? Haven't I suffered enough?"

No, Sarah couldn't find out. If she did, then of course she would leave and never come back. He knew that she was just making the best out of an unideal situation. She loved her friends. She cared about him. But her heart belonged there. If she left now, he would be broken and alone again.

He angrily slammed the book in a locked cabinet, accessible only to him.

* * *

He wanted her to be happy. He would give her the moon, the stars. He would do ANYTHING for her.

Anything, except send her away beyond his reach.

He could only hope that this would work.

Because he might just break apart if it didn't.

Jareth found her under his peach tree that he now allowed only her to stay under. He smiled to himself at the symbolism of it, a little surprised that she would want to sit at that particular spot.

He felt himself start to sweat.

It was now or never.

"Good morning, Sarah." He called after her.

Sarah looked up from the book she was reading. "Hi Jareth!" She waved.

He sat next to her. "What are you reading?"

Sarah held up the book and showed it to him. "The Tale of the Tailor's Daughter. I'm at the part where she's lost her magic."

"That's one of my favorite stories." He tapped the book. "A very rich tale, one that has been passed down for many generations."

"Really?" Sarah looked at the book, even more intrigued. "That's really cool."

"Indeed." He pointed at the author's name. "The author is a bit of a revolutionary, she has written the tale in the style of a novel, writing Luvena as a person, from her perspective. Not as a hero."

"That's what I love about these stories, it portrays them as people. Fallible and sometimes dumb, but also brave and wonderful." She said.

Jareth agreed. "Yes, much like one human girl who wished away her brother and went up against a very handsome Goblin King."

"Handsome? Really?" Sarah raised an eyebrow.

Jareth turned his body to face her. "Why? Am I wrong?" He winked.

"You trivialize my adventure by calling yourself handsome instead of dangerous and magical, oh and scary too." Sarah pointed out, but unable to help herself from reacting to his wink.

Jareth stroked his chin sarcastically. "Oh! I remember now, was it not you who said that I was, what, a 'big teddy bear on the inside?' and then proceeded to poke my shoulder?" He said as he poked her shoulder. "You were the one who technically trivialized your own adventure here."

Sarah stuck her tongue out at him.

"Very mature." Jareth swatted her hand away before it could poke him back.

"Look who's talking." Sarah rolled her eyes. "You still never told me why you're up so early."

Jareth clasped his hands together and twiddled his thumbs. The atmosphere changed instantly.

He cleared his throat. "Well, I was hoping to catch you before the goblins could take your attention." He rubbed the back of his neck, sweat beading in his forehead.

Sarah scooted a little closer to him, a little concerned about the way he was speaking. "Is there something wrong? You can talk to me, you know." Maybe something was bothering him and he wanted to speak with her alone. Not that she blamed him, conversation was hard to find in his castle.

Jareth felt his heart squeeze. "No, nothing is wrong. I just have a question to ask you."

She was so incredibly sweet. Should he even be asking her this? Well, too late now. He felt a little jittery. "I was just wondering if you wanted to… to eat."

Naturally, Sarah was confused. "To, eat?"

"Dinner." He clarified. "Eat dinner." He pointed at his chest. "With me."

Man, why was he being so nervous? He had wooed many women in the past. Why was he stumbling over his words with Sarah?

Sarah shook her head. "I'm sorry, but Jareth, we have dinner together every evening. And I've already had breakfast but I can join you if you want."

Jareth shook his head. He was getting nowhere with this. "No, you're wrong. I mean you're right." _Gah!_ He took a deep breath. "What I meant was, dinner as in _dinner-_ dinner." He overturned his hands so his palms were facing up.

Sarah looked sideways then back at him. "I don't know what you mean by _dinner-_ dinner." She even repeated his hand gesture.

Jareth sighed and rested his head on his knees. This was not going well. "I mean, dinner as in… something more formal."

"Formal?"

"Yes. More formal." He pointed at the castle. "You know, not in the… the normal dining room. But in a fancier one."

"Uh huh." Sarah still was not getting it.

Jareth rubbed his temple. It was a testament of how much he changed since meeting Sarah. In the past, even before becoming a king, he was always so hot tempered that when someone didn't understand him, he would either lash out or just give up. Now he realized that part of communication was him too, that it didn't mean that someone else was stupid just because they couldn't understand him.

But he just couldn't say the words. He was so afraid of a rejection and thinking too much about his damn discovery from two days ago.

"You know." He said quietly. "When two people dress up nicely… Just them. I mean others may be around but only the two people are really interacting with each other. And then going to have… dinner. At a formal place. Your world does it too."

Sarah opened her mouth, gaping at him once she realized what he was saying. "Oh! Yes, we do that too. Up there."

Now SHE was nervous too. "I mean, you already knew that, of course. You just mentioned it."

Jareth nodded, too embarrassed to speak.

Sarah let out a little nervous laugh. Never had her heart felt so happy and light. This was unlike any cute guy who had ever asked her on a date or any past boyfriends. "Yes, I would like to do that. With you, I mean. Just to clarify." She gave him a cheeky wink.

Jareth let out a breath he didn't know he was holding. "Wonderful. Does tonight work for you? I can meet you in the main hall."

Sarah pretended to think about it. He knew that she wasn't really busy, that she just was keeping herself doing things to pass the time or just reading. "Hmm. Let's see, what do I have to do today? I was planning on a chicken throwing contest with the goblins, you know."

"I swear if you are serious, then I am bogging you." He wagged his finger at her, all the tension leaving his body.

Sarah made a pouty face. "Oh, but then I will smell bad for when we dine together, won't I?"

"You are impossible, you know that?" Jareth grinned at her.

Sarah threw her head back and laughed. "Oh you."

Jareth stuck his tongue out at her.

"Well now who's the mature one?" Sarah poked his nose. "Hypocrite. Can I have one request though?"

"Anything, Precious." He said quietly. He really meant it. He would do anything for her…

"Can Hoggle join us for dinner?" She said in a very serious face. It was so serious that Jareth's mouth fell open.

"Uh, Sarah, I mean-"

"AHAHAHA!" Sarah pointed at him, rolling on the grass. "You should have seen your face!"

In his past, Jareth would have hated to look like a fool. He would have been a sore loser and just shoved everyone away. Sarah taught him how to laugh at himself and to enjoy the little moments in life.

"I did specify that this would be two people in this dinner, you know." He said after they were done laughing.

"Yeah yeah." Sarah made a dismissive wave. "I may be too dumb to understand what your _dinner-_ dinner comment meant, but I'm not _that_ dumb, you know."

"Are you sure about that?" Jareth teased her.

Sarah grabbed a handful of the fallen blossoms and blew them at Jareth. "Go away, I have some reading to do."

Jareth brushed the petals off him, but missed one that was stuck in his hair. Sarah thought he looked very adorable. "Sarah, you would rather read a book than talk to me, a very handsome king?"

"At the moment, yes." Sarah said without skipping a beat. "In fact, having _dinner-_ dinner with you is why I want you to leave. I'm giving up my evening reading time to have the _dinner-_ dinner with you, you know."

"Wow, I feel so special and wanted." He snorted. "And are you ever going to stop making fun of me about the _dinner-_ dinner comment?"

Sarah looked up from her book. "Nope. So long as you'll be seeing my face, I will always tease you."

"Good to know. Well, I shall see you this evening then." Jareth gave a mocking bow.

"You mean for _dinner-_ dinner?"

"Good-bye!" Jareth transported away.

Sarah roared with laughter.


	12. Valentine Evenings

"Lady! Blaire the Brownie left you a very pretty dress!" Evie squealed with delight. "Come come!"

"Almost done!" Sarah called after her. She was feeling so nervous, but also excited. Something was going to change tonight between her and Jareth, she knew it. If the way they had exchanged sweet glances at each other that day had any indication, tonight would be wonderful indeed.

She got out of the bath and wrapped her hair in a towel, putting a robe on. She followed the goblins who were waiting very impatiently in front of her bathroom door to her room.

"Here, Lady!" One of the younger ones pointed to her closet door. "Open!"

Sarah touched the silver handle and opened it up. She gasped at the dress.

She had sent in a request for the dress to be simple but elegant. While the dress she wore in the crystal dream would remain close to her heart, she was older now. She was a young woman, not a woman-child anymore.

This dress was a golden yellow color that would made her skin look rosy and healthy as well as make a lovely contrast with her dark hair. The skirt was made to flutter with little golden accents to represent the wind and small flowers etched upon it. The bodice was simple, with the corset in the back and a little rose in the top center and off the shoulder top.

Clearly, this dress was made for a ball. She saw that there were no gloves for her, as would customarily be worn with a dress like this. She wondered if Jareth would wear gloves tonight or not.

She hoped not.

"This is beautiful." She touched the fabric in awe. "Make sure that there are extra sweets for Blair tonight as a thank you."

"Yes Lady!" The goblins hung on her every word. "Put the dress on!"

"In a bit, let me do my hair and makeup first!" She promised.

Since she wasn't very adept at hair styling with the tools from the Underground (and neither were the goblins), she decided to do what her mother had taught her for prom: a simple braid on the top of her head to part it down one side and to curl the rest of her hair. It was very elegantly looking.

Make up, on the other hand, was something she WAS good at. She reached for a soft pink, choosing to highlight her features. She put on a bit of a pretty golden eyeshadow and some highlighters on her cheek, giving it a lovely glow. Seeing that it was time, she took out the rollers and let her now curly hair tumble down.

When she was done with that, she finally donned on the dress. She asked the goblins for a bit of help in lacing up the dress. Unfortunately, it took much longer than anticipated (goblins weren't exactly the most elegant of creatures and had the worst fine motor skills). It was a bit tight but she decided to just go with it or else she would be late for her dinner with Jareth.

Opening up the jewelry drawer, she held up a few earrings but none of them fit her ensemble. That's when she saw the pair of golden earcuffs.

Different, yet elegant and beautiful.

Sarah looked at herself, almost gasping. She looked absolutely elegant, like royalty.

"Lady so pretty!" Evie clapped. "Kingy will love."

Sarah blushed. She hoped he would. Hoggle came in to join her. He was speechless.

"Sarah, yer a beauty." He said with reverence. "I misses ya when ye were a young girl. I just feel nostalgic."

To him, Sarah will always be that 15 year old girl who asked him for help in running the labyrinth. But tonight, she looked like a queen. He resisted the urge to kneel before her.

"Oh Hoggle." Sarah held his hand in hers. "I'm so glad to have you all this time. Thank you for supporting me."

"Well, he's a meanie at times, but he ain't a bad person." Hoggle patted her hand. "Ya've made him a better person. And, he's googley-eyed all over for ya. Didymus said that he was tryna make sure he looked good enough for ya. He never cares for anything like that."

Sarah smiled sadly. "I care about him a lot. I feel like…"

_Like my heart will explode at the thought of him._

"I know, but ya have nothin' ta worry about." Hoggle reassured her. "Now, let's get ya to the dining room."

* * *

Jareth stood at the top of the stairs, clearing his throat and tugging a bit at his collar to ease the nervousness in him. This was his chance to impress her. This was his chance to get her to stay with him. To soothe his loneliness.

He hadn't thought about the curse in a long time, but if she was able to fall in love with him and proclaim her love, then maybe she could break his curse. Then, she needn't know that she could have left him. They would be living their best lives, and she would be able to visit her family then.

"You will do great, Thy Majesty." Sir Didymus bowed to him.

Jareth sure hoped he was right.

He heard a fluttering sound. Turning his head, he saw Sarah standing on the other side, smiling at him.

His heart stopped for a brief moment.

He must have blacked out for he had no memory of himself walking down the steps to greet her in the middle. She was so beautiful, but this was more than that. She radiated of that beauty from within her very soul.

Sarah was absolutely stunned at seeing Jareth. He was wearing a stunning blue jacket with gold embroidered on it with black tights under black boots. Not too different from the Crystal Dream but enough that Sarah wanted to keep staring. He held his arm out to her, hardly blinking. She started to feel self conscious at his gaze but fought the urge to look away. Many boys and boyfriends had been awed by her beauty, but none of them were Jareth the Goblin King.

She could tell he saw her from the inside out. That he wasn't just looking at her beauty, but her heart and soul.

Jareth carefully took her hand, trying to keep his wits about him. He gently lowered his head, never taking his eyes off of hers and kissed the back of her hand. He was glad that he wasn't wearing any gloves tonight. "You look absolutely magnificent, Sarah."

Sarah couldn't stand it anymore. She looked away and blushed. "Thank you. You don't look so bad yourself, Jareth."

Jareth chuckled. Always with spirit, his Sarah. It was why he was so smitten with her. "Shall we go to dinner, My Lady?"

He held out his arm and she placed her hand in the crook of his elbow. "Absolutely, My King," Sarah gave him another shy smile.

He pulled out her chair for her and pushed it in, letting her sit down first. He wanted to treat her like a queen.

During dinner, Jareth was nervously trying to be graceful. Normally, he was the best at it but tonight, everything was on his nerves. He was so distracted by her beauty that sometimes he forgot what she was even asking him.

"Hello? Earth to Jareth."

He looked up to see Sarah snickering at him. "Did you even hear what I just asked?"

Now it was Jareth's turn to blush. "I'm sorry, no I did not hear you. And for the record, we are still on Earth."

"It's a saying, Jareth." Sarah was still holding in her laugh. Normally she wouldn't find this so funny but her nerves were getting to her. Then she tilted her head a little. "I'm sorry, did you just say that we're on Earth?"

"Yes. Why wouldn't we be?" He mimicked her head tilting.

Sarah put her hand to her lips in thought. "I guess I never thought about that. How is it possible?"

Jareth copied her actions again, wondering when she would catch on that he was teasing her. "Imagine a different plane of existence, for example. I don't know if that helps or not though."

Sarah scrunched her eyebrows. "Maybe a little, sounds like a different dimension. Heh, maybe this is the fifth dimension that scientists have yet to understand." She mused.

She turned to Jareth to ask another question. She started to open her mouth and noticed that he was carefully mimicking her actions. "Are you copying me?"

"Took you long enough to figure it out." He winked as she play shoved him.

"Jareth!" She scolded him, laughing.

"Yes, Sarah?" He snickered a little.

"You're irritating." She shook her head. He was just like a little kid at times.

They laughed for a bit until Jareth noticed that Sarah's face was a little too red for his liking. Her breathing seemed labored too.

"Sarah?" He put his hand on her upper arm in concern. "Are you alright?"

Sarah coughed a little. "I - yeah. It's just the goblins did my corset a little tight, that's all."

"Tsk tsk." Jareth shook his head and sighed. "You don't have to make it so tight that it hurts you know."

"I know, but I couldn't do it myself and it was hard enough already for them to do," She gave a shrug.

"Ah yes, goblins are not known to be that good at doing anything elegant." He said with amusement. "Here, let me help you loosen it."

Sarah turned even more red and hesitated slightly, her eyes going big. The thought of it made her feel quite warm all of a sudden.

Jareth so wanted to make a joke, it was almost too good to pass up with the whole situation. But he reminded himself that this was a night that was special. So he kept it in him. He removed his hand from her arm. In a sober voice, he said "Sarah, I have made many mistakes. But I am a gentleman. Your breathing is too shallow and I'm concerned for your health."

Sarah felt bad. He teased her often but he never made her uncomfortable and would stop any jokes before it got too far, even when he was a jerk. She nodded and turned around, moving her hair to the front.

Jareth meant what he said. He was a gentleman and he was going to treat Sarah with respect. Walking over to her side, he sat in the chair next to her to inspect her dress. He tried to use magic at first but the ties were way too knotted to be done with just magic. "My god, how did I not notice this before?" He said aloud.

"Notice what?" Sarah turned her head slightly as Jareth worked the knots.

"They made a mess of this!" He laughed. "My goodness, how are you not fainting by now?"

"Sheer determination, Your Majesty." Sarah joined in with his laughter. "That got me through your Labyrinth, you know."

She started to feel slightly more light headed, but she couldn't tell if it was because her corset was so tight or because Jareth was touching her dress, brushing against her skin now and then.

"Oh?" He undid the ties and Sarah took a deep breath. After a few gulps of air, he redid the ties for her, still keeping her modest. He resisted the urge to kiss her exposed shoulder, not wanting to scare her away and also wanting to keep his promise as a gentleman. "I thought it was because of Toby?"

"Sheer determination to get my brother. Really, I thought that goes without saying." She turned to him. "Thank you for fixing it by the way."

"Of course." He said. "Corsets really should not be so tight as to hurt you."

"I'll keep that in mind." Sarah leaned back and took another deep breath. "My head feels better now."

"Here, have some water." Jareth poured some water from the jug and tipped it to her lips, one hand on her back to keep her stable.

Sarah automatically put her hand on the glass too, touching his hand. He was so close that she could smell his distinct peach and spices scent. It made her feel light headed again.

"Better?" He rubbed her back comfortingly.

Gods, he would do anything for this woman in front of him.

"Much better." She thanked him.

They had a lovely dinner, as they always did. It was full of flirting jokes and light touches, shy smiles and glances filled with desire.

Things were exactly the same between them. Just an added layer.

Looking around the room, she saw a door on the other side of where they had entered. "Where does that lead to?"

Jareth looked at where she pointed and bit his bottom lip. "It's a ballroom."

A sort of dark tension flowed over them. Not bad, just a little dark and unsure. The last time there was a ballroom…

Sarah decided that she wasn't going to let the past spoil their future. She reached out to put her hand on his arm. "Can we go and explore?"

Jareth looked up, unable to help the blush that flowed on his cheeks at her touching his arm. "Absolutely, my lady."

He pulled her chair out and offered her his arm again. Sarah moved a little closer to him than before, a little silent agreement connecting them together.

Jareth waved his hand, the grand doors opening. It was pitch black.

Another wave from Jareth's hand and all the candles were lit.

Sarah's breath was taken away. The whole ballroom looked so new and beautiful, not like it was hidden away for years and years. It reminded her of the great palace halls she had seen in Europe or in those period movies. Every little artist detail was done with great care, the floor was even clean and polished. The curtains were opened, the stars filling the room.

Jareth stood behind her as she twirled around and touched the little statues here and there. He specifically asked the goblins to help him clean this ballroom, wanting to create a new memory with Sarah instead of the other one that they had danced in all those years ago.

"I take it that you like it?" He interrupted her thoughts.

Sarah felt breathless. "It's beautiful. I've never seen anything so beautiful as this."

The moment she said that, Jareth's heart grew a little more. "Have you not seen your own reflection, Sarah?"

Sarah turned around, realizing that Jareth was very, very close to her.

She couldn't speak. He was wearing make up that made his face glow, the highlighting his features.

But that wasn't the thing that she noticed most. No. What she noticed most were his eyes. They were so soft and oh so kind.

Jareth held his hand out to her. "My Precious Sarah, may I have this dance?"

Sarah placed her hand in his. "It would be an honor, Your Majesty."

Out of nowhere but also everywhere, a beautiful tune started to fill the room. Jareth placed a hand on her hip, sliding it up to her shoulder blade. She couldn't help but shiver at his touch. Something about this just felt so right.

She had so many feelings for the man in front of her. It took her all she could to not kiss him at this moment. Something in her told her to wait, that there will be a time for that later. For now, she was to enjoy being in his arms.

Jareth spun her around, admiring the way her dress flared out as she twirled. He put a hand behind his back and held her hand, spinning them both around. He pulled her to him with a smile and placed both hands on her back. Sarah looked at him, a bit unsure, but trusting him with all of her heart. She put her hands on his shoulders. He dipped her down, almost to the floor, before bringing her back up and spinning her around in his strong arms. Sarah gasped and giggled.

That trust in her eyes almost made him break down. She was a pure soul, and he almost stopped it right there and told her what he knew.

But he was a coward. A lonely coward. He told himself that his plan was to make her fall in love with him and to say it in front of him, then maybe, she wouldn't have to know what he had discovered because then the curse would be broken and they could travel freely to the Above. Yes, that's it. That way he wouldn't have to tell her anything.

He pushed through the dance and melted when she laughed. If he could bottle up a sound, it would be her laughter. To him, it was sweet and endearing. He would never get tired of it.

He ran his hand through her hair, letting it fall down to the back of her neck. She pulled him closer to her and was almost nose to nose with him.

When the song slowed to a close, he put a hand on his chest and bowed. Sarah curtsied in kind.

They didn't have to say anything to each other. The magic that was between them was stronger than anything they had experienced. Something beautiful and sacred had touched their souls.

Jareth held his arm out to her. Sarah took it and leaned into him as they walked through the double doors.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Her dress is obviously inspired by Belle's dress, both the original Disney animated and live action version. I do prefer the original dress but I really like the skirt of the live action.


	13. No One Can Blame You For Walking Away

Hoggle, Ludo, Sir Didymus, and Evie watched from above as the King and the Champion walked side by side to the balcony.

"That went very well!" Sir Didymus said with pride. "His Majesty has been on his best behavior and the best gentleman for our Lady Sarah."

"King nice. Sarah pretty." Ludo agreed with a big smile.

"I wonder if this means that they are courting? Or will be courting? What do you think, Brother Hoggle?" Sir Didymus turned to his friend.

Hoggle and Evie were unnaturally quiet. Especially for such a good night.

"I dunno." Hoggle said, unsure. "I has a bad feelin' about this."

"Brother, thy mind is just sad!" Sir Didymus tried to reassure him. "I know that the Lady considers you one of her very best friends. Her relationship with the king doesn't change anything!"

"Hoggle right." Evie said, a bit shaky. "King too nice."

"Yeah, he's nicer, true." Hoggle didn't want to ruin anything. "But he's still a rat. She hasn't been here long. Old habits die hard. He's a sneaky one."

"Must we be so pessimistic?" Sir Didymus looked heartbroken and exasperated, waving his staff around. "His time as king as changed him. He is kind to the babes here and the runners at times."

"I knows, but he's still selfish and bratty." Hoggle shuffled away. "I just don't want Sarah to get hurt."

"Sarah strong." Ludo said with certainty. "Sarah very strong."

Sir Didymus pointed at Ludo. "See? He is right. Our Lady has put the King in place so many times. She can fend for herself. However, if she needs us, she knows to call. Let us go, to give them their space."

* * *

Jareth felt a sense of pride welling up in him. He could tell that Sarah's affections for him increased. That he was a step closer to getting her to fall in love with him.

The next step is to ask her to court him.

Then maybe she would to him that she loved him.

He took her hands in his. His eyes were gleaming. His body was shaking. His heart was pounding. No one else had ever done this to him before. Yes, he wanted to break the curse. But this was more than that. This was Sarah.

He was falling for her too.

Their faces were so close… their noses were almost touching.

He had to know something before he kissed her. "Sarah, are you happy here?"

Sarah's bright green eyes were shining, but then suddenly dimmed at the question. She looked a bit to the side, her shoulders sagging. "Well, I suppose…" She said softly, looking out into the sky.

That sure confidence he felt just a moment ago faded just as quickly as someone putting out a fire. "Sarah?"

She still didn't look at him, but took her hands away, angling her body away. "Can anyone really be happy if they're not free to see their loved ones?"

She would not have dared to say these words on the first day they met, nor the second for how short his temper was. It was a testament for how far they had evolved. She understood now that he never meant to hurt her and never would, no matter how sassy he got. She could not deny that she was feeling something for the handsome king in front of her but she would not settle for someone who she was just stuck with.

If she chose him, it would be because she wanted to. Not because he was the only choice.

She shook her head a little. It wasn't fair to him for her to say that. Huh. Fair. That word really had a different meaning now. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have said that. I know it wasn't your fault that I'm here in the first place."

Jareth felt immense guilt. Sure, he was not raised to have kindness or goodness in his soul, but if it weren't for him, she wouldn't be in this situation with him either.

Curse her overused phrase, but it really was not fair to her.

And he had a basis for comparison.

She thought it wasn't his fault. True, it was not his fault that she was wished away here. Nor was his fault that he had no idea that she could go back until a few nights ago. But it was his fault for not telling her what he recently discovered.

He slowly moved closer to her. "Sarah, I have something to tell you. Something I found out recently."

Sarah turned slightly, curious. "What is it?" Would he tell her about something adorable he learned? Some secrets the castle held?

He knew what she would say. He braced himself for the impact. "I have found that you are not bound to stay with me as I had thought."

Her head snapped all the way to his direction. Of all things, she was not expecting this. "What?"

He twiddled his thumbs together. "You are the champion of my labyrinth. Because of that, you are not obligated to stay, even if you were wished away. You can go home, if you want." His voice was breaking, but Sarah didn't hear that.

"How long did you know this for? Why didn't you tell me right away?" She demanded.

Tears welled up in her eyes. Here she was, thinking that he was really caring about her, only to learn that he was keeping this secret from her that meant her freedom. So that she would be tied down with him.

He winced at her anger. She had every right to be upset. "I found out last night."

There was silence. Sarah made fists with her hands, shaking angrily.

"You asked me to have this - this date with you AFTER you knew of this fact? This dance? To do what, to trick me into staying with you?" She seethed. She was hurt. More than hurt. She trusted him. She told him how much her family meant to her. He heard her cry when she came to his kingdom. He had no right to keep this from her!

When he said nothing, Sarah put her hand over her mouth. "My god, you were manipulating me into staying with you. To suffer your stupid curse with you!"

She took off the ear cuffs and threw them on the ground. "How. Could. YOU?!"

"I'm sorry, Sarah," He said quietly. "I know it was wrong-"

"DAMN RIGHT IT WAS WRONG!" She screamed at him. "YOU BETRAYED MY TRUST. I guard my trust very carefully, not just on the semantics of promises but the spirit of the promise."

She knew she was being cruel. But she was so angry at him. It had taken so much of her to trust him, to believe the words he was saying. She gave him the benefit of the doubt when he was temperamental with her, and to find that he ruined things made her want to vomit in disgust and sadness.

Jareth just sat there, his head down. He didn't know what to say or what to do. He deserved all of that. Not just because he didn't tell her the truth from the start, but because of how he was like when he was a handsome, attractive prince of the court. To understand one's actions in the full, to feel so much guilt was the worst punishment of all. No more hiding behind his mistakes. It was time that he owned up to his selfishness, his trickeries.

"Tell me, Jareth." Sarah folded her arms. "Were you ever planning on telling me?"

"I promise I was." He got on his knees begging her. "I just - I wanted to have one last night with you. That if this was the last time I saw your face, that would make me happy. Please, just listen."

She didn't want to. She wanted to throw her hair pieces at his face and scream at him some more. But as always, her curiosity got the better of her. "Fine. Speak."

"I know what I did was wrong. I wanted you to stay because I, I have grown fond of you." He said quietly. He couldn't even flat out tell her how exactly he felt. If he did, his heart may just shatter. And surely, if he told her how the curse could be broken then she would think worse of him and wonder if his affections were false. "You have given me light, given me purpose. I mean it."

"Oh, did you?" She sneered.

"Yes!" He said earnestly. "Please, Sarah. I am not going to force you to be a prisoner. I would never do that. I have done terrible things but that is not one of them. Please, at least if you go, believe that all I want is your happiness."

She was still upset. She wanted to believe him, but she also wanted to NOT believe him. Her feelings were too strong for this to be easy on her. If he was a bad person, it would be so easy to just walk away.

Why was this so painful?

"My happiness? My happiness, _Goblin King_ -"

He shrank at her use of his title instead of his name.

"-is to be able to see my family."

In the past, he would have yelled back at anyone who was speaking to him with such disdain. He did not tolerate this kind of language and would dismiss them immediately.

But not tonight. Sarah changed him. She forced him to look into himself, to be a better person. He was in love.

He was in love.

Because of love, he understood how completely idiotic he had been. He didn't even care that her happiness did not include him. He was more than responsible for her pain.

And because he loved the girl in front of him, he summoned some strong magic. Magic that would weaken him. He produced a crystal and showed it to her. "As you wish. Here. There is Toby."

Sarah took it from him instantly, her focus solely on her brother. "Oh no!"

Jareth looked up. "What?" Fear was the last tone he had expected from her in looking into the crystal.

Sarah momentarily forgot how angry she was at him. "He's - Toby!"

Toby was in the hospital, tubes and all kinds of things hooked up on him. Her father and stepmother were hovering over him, looking very worried.

"He's sick. I have to go to him." She said to herself. Her poor, sweet baby brother.

"Then you must go."

Sarah looked back at Jareth, who was now getting up and standing over her. Amazing how not so long ago, he was terrifying and a formidable figure. Now, he just seemed comforting.

She mentally shook her head. Was he really comforting, or was she just so starved for contact with someone other than goblins?

Maybe this wasn't him, but her own feelings. Was this some coping mechanism she was exhibiting?

Jareth covered the crystal with his hand. It glowed and he gave a tired smile, letting go of it.

Sarah raised an eyebrow at him. "How come you never let me see them before? And what did you do to the crystal?"

Jareth clasped his hands behind his back and looked into the moon. Even as she was speaking with him with such an angry tone, he was full of love for her. He would place the moon within her heart if she asked. "I could have done it before, but it drains me greatly. I can see someone in my own kingdom easily but outside it, let alone the Above? Very very difficult to. I just put in more magic because I would like you to have it, if you so choose. To remember me and everyone else by. Just tell it what to show you and it will do so."

Sarah looked at it, still unsure about his motives. But once again, she felt that he wasn't lying to her, that he was being sincere. She saw now that he did look a bit weak and pale. She almost wanted to reach out and touch him…

Almost.

She thought about it some more. No one was perfect. Everyone makes mistakes especially when in isolation for so long. And besides, he had planned to tell her about her freedom. Even if he had not planned to tell her before, he told her now. She was not one to judge for she had wished her own brother away because she was annoyed and dramatic.

She held the crystal to her heart. "Thank you."

Jareth's smile got just a tad brighter. "Of course, Precious."

That nickname made her feel a slight tug at her heart, but she was determined. And, she needed time away from him at least for a while. "I have to… to go. I'm sorry."

Jareth shook his head. He felt quite weary. "Please don't be. I shall get a portal ready for you. You know how the goblins are, so I will send your three close friends to bid you farewell." He started to walk.

"No." She put her hand on his arm to stop him without thinking. "Don't do that. I don't think I could stand seeing their faces."

_But she could stand me being in pain_ , can't she? Jareth's inner thoughts snarled a little.

Then he calmed down. _It is only my fault that she feels such animosity towards me._

"Understood." He gave a nod. "When will you be ready to leave?"

"I could leave right now." She said firmly. Her fears of Toby came rushing right back. "He's at the hospital and I have no idea what's happening to him or how severe it is."

Jareth gave a nod. Summoning more of his powers, he drew a large circle with his finger. A string of sparkling lights made the edges of the circle and inside showed the living room.

Sarah approached it. She was going to see her family again! She was going to be with them!

Then why did she feel so sad?

"You should go now, it won't last for long," Jareth's chest heaved, trying to keep up with the strain his magic was putting on his body. Sending someone back this way was something he'd never done before, and went against the grain of magic as she was not a runner anymore.

Sarah stepped through the portal. Once she stepped into her home, she turned around and faced him, seeing him on the other side. She wanted to say something, but what do you say to someone like Jareth?

Jareth stared at her, also not saying anything.

They just looked at each other, not even blinking as the portal closed on them. Sarah reached out one last time-

-but it closed. Her hand went through where it had been.

Her other hand still clutching on the crystal.

She felt an overwhelming urge to cry, but did not. She wanted to come home to be with her family.

"I'm coming Toby, I'm coming to be with you."

* * *

Jareth watched as she disappeared from him. Forever.

He picked up the ear cuffs that she had angrily thrown on the ground. He cradled them to his heart, pressing his lips to them, for they were a part of her that she had left behind with him. "Sarah… My Precious Sarah…"

The inhabitants of the Goblin Kingdom were used to hearing their king storm in his dramatic tempers. But they had never experienced him being in such pain before.

Jareth's screams could not be heard, but they could be felt throughout the whole kingdom. He had used up so much energy that he was coughing up blood.

Only for her would he willingly drain so much of his energy twice in such a short amount of time.

This was not going to end well for him. The sickness was taking over his body from overexerting himself. If there had been a physician with the correct potions, maybe he would be fine. But he didn't care anymore. Maybe it was his time anyway.

The only woman he would ever love. Funny, isn't it? The moment he knew what love was like, the moment he truly loved someone was the moment that he lost her forever.

Because that's what love was. Love was to put their happiness before yours, to give them the greatest good.

And the greatest good for Sarah was not with him.

He had everything in his old life. Riches, parties, his pick of ladies, just the grandest things. He had no need for anyone.

Until Sarah.

It was too late. He had tried to manipulate her into loving HIM. The enchantress never said that he had to love her. He was sure that after that, he would just let her go to live her life. He didn't understand how painful a broken heart was because he never experienced it.

He closed his eyes right there, on the cold stone floor. Even behind those closed eyelids, he could see her. He could see the way her hair flowed onto her shoulder. He could see the way she smiled when he teased her or the fire in her eyes when he made her angry.

She never truly left him. She would always be in his soul, in his mind. She was out of his reach, but never truly out of his sight. He could almost see her walking into the doors, to say good morning to him.

It was almost too much but not enough. To feel this pain, he welcomed it. Never had he felt so alive, even if it would kill him.

For how could he live with this pain? How could he live without her? She left him to be wasted away, without her light.

Not that he blamed her for walking away.


	14. Home at Last, Or Is It?

[AngelGlass](https://www.fanfiction.net/login.php?cache=bust) | Logout[FanFiction](https://www.fanfiction.net/) | unleash your imagination

Sarah hitched up her skirts, on her way to the garage when she heard yelling from upstairs.

"YOU'RE MEAN!" She heard Toby scream.

"Toby-" she heard her own voice pleading with her brother.

"I WISH THE GOBLINS WOULD TAKE YOU AWAY RIGHT NOW!"

She heard thunder and lightning.

"Toby, what did you do?"

Present Sarah ran up the stairs, being as quick as she could. She looked into Toby's room and her mouth fell open. Past Sarah was screaming, a tornado of glitter enveloping around her and carrying her out the window. Toby screamed in horror, running after the swirling of glitter.

"Sarah!" He screamed, his feet on the ledge.

He was going to jump after the tornado of glitter.

Present Sarah ran as fast as she could. "TOBY!"

Toby looked behind him. "Sarah?"

When he looked behind, he lost balance and slipped.

Sarah reached just in time. She grabbed ahold of his hand as he dangled from the ledge. "Toby! Hold on!"

"Sarah!" He cried, swinging back and forth. "HELP ME!"

He was not light. Holding a kid his size over a ledge was not easy to do. She was worried that she would pop his arm out of the socket. "Put your foot against the wall!"

"What?" He was still shaking with fear.

"You know, like those rock climbers." She reached her other hand out. "Grab me with both hands!"

It really wasn't helping that both of them were sweating. He was getting slipperier and slipperier by the moment.

He was still confused. "Huh?"

Sarah realized that she had to talk to him from his point of view. "You know, like Spiderman when he uses his web to climb buildings, when he puts his feet on the side of buildings?"

Toby looked at her with complete trust. "Spiderman?"

"Yes!" Sarah said quickly, trying to not lose her mind. Or her grip on Toby.

Toby planted his feet on the side of the house. "Now what?"

"Now walk to me, and don't let go." She wished that she had grabbed his wrists instead of his hands. This was incredibly difficult.

To Toby's credit, he bravely walked up as she said. He almost got to the window, at a really awkward angle where it was too weird to climb. Sarah told him to grab on her neck, guiding him as she counted to three for him to trust her, to let got for that one second as she wrapped her arms around him.

Toby cried as she carried him inside. "Oh, Tobes. It's okay." She rubbed his back and kissed his head. "You were so brave!"

He cried for a long while. Sarah told him that he would be fine so long as he doesn't stand on window ledges again. "Toby, what were you thinking?" She asked without thinking herself.

"I wished you away." He sniffed. "I wished you to the goblins and I didn't mean it! I had to get you back!"

He looked at her dress. At her hair and make up. He got even more confused. "What happened?"

"TOBY!"

Both siblings turned around to see the parents at the door. Robert and Karen went to hug Toby, kissing him over and over until he pushed them away.

"We heard that you were hanging from the window!" Karen sobbed. "The neighbor called and said that you were going to fall."

Sarah looked across the window. "Wait, THEM?" It was one of their nosy neighbors. "So instead of helping us or letting us know, they called you guys instead of the ambulance?"

Stupid, nosy neighbors.

"Sarah, what happened?" Robert asked her. "And why are you all dressed up so nicely? You're dressed up more than you did when you went to prom."

Before Sarah could respond, Toby butted in. "It's my fault! I wished Sarah away to the goblins! Then they took her away and I tried to go after her. But she came back and rescued me and pulled me up!"

Toby looked at her dress and made a connection. "Did you meet with the Goblin King, Sarah? Did he give you back because he knew I was sorry? Did he give you the pretty dress?"

Their parents were scratching their heads. Robert tucked Toby in. "That's enough, Toby. I think whatever game you were playing went too far. You should go to sleep."

When they tucked Toby in, the three adults went to the kitchen.

"I'm sorry." Sarah started to make tea, needing to do something with her hands. It gave her time to remember what occurred weeks ago. "Umm, I know that you were on a date. Everything's fine now. Toby was just being difficult before bed."

"See, I knew this would happen." Karen sighed. "I'm sorry, honey."

Karen's words were fading in the background. Sarah thought again about how she was HOME. How she had thought that she would never see her parents or Toby again, and now she was back. She could resume the life that she had here.

But for some reason, she felt empty.

"I think his imagination is just taking over." Robert agreed with Karen.

Sarah thought about how Jareth had given her the crystal, how he had not only taken her back here, but had turned back time. Time to mere seconds before she had left.

She thought about how Toby had been in the hospital, according to the crystal.

"What made him go to the window like that?" Robert asked Sarah.

_The window! If I hadn't been there, he absolutely would have fallen. Did Jareth know? Wait, he couldn't have because he said that to conjure magic to spy on people takes up too much energy, it's why he roams around Above as an owl. Or used to. Before his wings were gone. Jareth saved his life…_

"Sarah?" Robert's voice got a bit louder. "Did you hear what I asked?"

Sarah set some mugs on the table and poured the boiling water in. She wasn't paying much attention and poured some onto her hand. "AH!"

She set the kettle down and went to the sink to run her hand under cold water. "What Dad?"

Karen put a hand on his arm. "I think she's in shock, Robert. She did just have a huge scare with Toby."

Robert gathered the mugs. "Sarah, are you okay, honey? You seem to be so far away."

Indeed, Sarah did feel far away. She hadn't had time to process anything. One moment she was so intent on coming here to be with Toby and then the next, he was almost dying. And now, she hadn't had the chance to think about what happened between herself and Jareth.

Not to mention what ALMOST happened between them when their heads got close…

Sarah shrugged. "Yeah, I'm fine now. Everyone is safe. Everyone is fine."

It was a lie. She was NOT fine.

"I think I should go to bed." She stood up suddenly, needing to be alone.

"Sarah, if you need us, just call, okay?" Robert called after her.

Sarah rested her hand on the wall. She turned just slightly at the words that echoed much like her three companions had. "I will."

She went up the stairs as quickly as possible, not wanting her parents to see her tears.

"I think we should stay home and not watch that movie." Karen put her hand on Robert's shoulder. "I think the kids had a shock."

Robert nodded. "Yeah. Do you want to still maybe watch something down here? Just the two of us?"

Karen drank the rest of her tea, smiling at the idea of cuddling next to her husband to enjoy a film. "Let's get changed into our pajamas."

* * *

"She's gone?" Hoggle couldn't believe what Didymus was telling him. "Ya canna be serious!"

"Brother Hoggle, you know that I am a knight!" Sir Didymus poked his friend's shoulder with the staff. "I am bound by honor and duty to always tell the truth and to be serious in these sort of things! It is in the Knight's Code of Conduct on page-"

"STOP TALKING!" Ludo roared.

Everyone stopped and stared at the usual gentle and patient beast. He never lashed out, never uttered a word of frustration like how he was now.

Ludo rubbed his eyes, large tears flowing. "Ludo miss Sarah."

Hoggle wasn't having this. He walked away from his friends.

"Where are you going?" Didymus called after him.

"To talk to the rat who calls himself Jareth!" Hoggle replied.

He got to Jareth's chambers and nearly smashed his hand through the door.

The door opened on its own, just a crack. Hoggle didn't waste a second telling him how he felt. How dare he stop her from saying goodbye? What did he did to make her go away? All Didymus said was that Sarah needed to be with her family, that she was too upset to say goodbye. "Why ya gotta send her away? Why ya gotta-"

He stopped when he saw Jareth on the floor, eyes drawn and extremely pale. He had a bowl in his hand that was full of-

-Coughed up blood?

Hoggle backed away a little, unnerved. He had never seen such piercing sadness from him before.

"Believe me, the last thing I wanted to do was to send her away." He pulled the corner of the blanket from his bed and wrapped his body around it. "I found a clause that lets her go, as the Champion. I wanted her to stay, I thought maybe I could forget about it. But I can't. She wants to be with her family. Young Toby is sick, or was. So I sent her back to the time right before she would have been wished away."

Hoggle couldn't believe it. He was a creature of magic but not one who can harness it like the fae can. Still, he understood the basic principles. "Ya sent her back to those weeks? How are ya not dead? Ya can only turn back time a few hours at a time, can't ya? And even then that's when there's an active runner."

Jareth smirked a little, running his hand through his hair. Hoggle no longer felt scared. He felt sad for the king. Sarah was beyond a friend to him, that much was obvious. She had enchanted him just as she had with everyone else in this world. "And I would do it over again. For her."

Hoggle understood the gravity of the situation now. He never had a good relationship with Jareth, but he never would wish something this painful on him.

Jareth answered his unasked question. "You want to know what happens now. Now, we wait. A letter will be sent to the High Queen about a replacement for me when it's time. Although, I advise for you to not tell anyone about that right now. If you had listened to Didymus, he would have told you all of this and now I'm forced to repeat it to you."

Hoggle felt his stomach drop. He didn't know how to approach that subject so he just nodded, accepting it. "Will she come back?"

Jareth looked out into the moon, smiling at how peaceful it was. How he had seen Sarah not a few hours ago, her whole self being lit by it. How he would have given her the moon I she asked "Yes, she will. Because she loves you and the others, her friends. She has a way back, and she will come. I have ensured it. If she wants, she is eligible as Goblin Queen and can take the throne if she so desires."

Hoggle didn't miss the underlying message. "She'll see ya too, for no other reason than to be polite. She cares about ya."

Jareth shook his head. "No, she won't. By the time she will have made up her mind to come back, to think about it carefully, it won't be because of me or for me. And by then, it will be too late for me to see her."

Hoggle's eyes opened wide. The door behind him opened.

"I wish to be alone now." Jareth said. "Unless I am being delivered food or anything else happens, I will only have visitors if they are summoned."

Hoggle hesitated. He didn't want to leave Jareth in this state. He looked too sad.

"Hoggle, please go." Jareth said.

Hearing his real name being used, he gave a bow. "Yes, Yer Majesty."

When he left, Jareth looked back at the moon. He got more than what he deserved, he understood that now. And his grandmother gave him the chance to redeem himself. He wished he had did some things better, but now, in what he was sure would be the last of his life, he was at peace that he did what he could to amend what he could to those that he had wronged. That he had changed. That he did the right thing for the right reasons. That for a brief time, he could understand empathy and goodness through Sarah. He had started that journey before he met her, and it was now completed.

He hoped that she was happy, that she would one day forgive him for his actions.

And knowing what will happen, that she wouldn't blame herself.

For the first time in his life, he felt peace.

He wasn't happy, but he felt at peace.

And that was enough.

* * *

In her room, Sarah looked around. She touched the mirror of her vanity, looking at her own reflection.

It had been a few hours ago, but already it felt like a lifetime since she danced in Jareth's arms. Since he had teased her. Since he had told her how sorry he was for keeping that information from her…

She took off her hair pieces. Then wiped her make up. And slowly, she took the dress off, holding back tears when she saw flecks of glitter flowing down.

She got a small vial that she had for some reason and scooped up the glitter into it. She tied a string around it and slipped it over her neck after she had gotten into her pajamas.

"He kept things from me." She tried to say, but even now, she knew her words were hollow. While true and that he had no right to keep such information from her, could she really blame him? He was doing his best to be a good person. He cared about her, and he didn't have to do that much for her.

He wasn't just doing the right thing for the sake of it. He did it because she was important to him.

"Did I make the right choice?" She rocked on the bed, holding her pillow to her chest and weeping into it. "What was I supposed to do, stay with him? Especially when Toby was hurt…"

Maybe she should have. But what about that curse? Then again, how much did she know about him? She hadn't even known him a whole month. He didn't deserve to be alone, but she didn't deserve to be stuck there either.

She pulled out the crystal, just holding it in her hand. She was afraid of using it, afraid of what she might see. So she just held onto it.

When she finally fell asleep, she did so with the crystal cradled close to her heart.


	15. Such a Sad Love

A week had passed by. Sarah told her parents that she was just playing dress up with the dress that she had on, and they just accepted it. It made sense, after all. She was just playing with Toby.

Everything seemed not quite there. It was similar to when she had gone to college and came back to her home. It was the same yet very different. Not because of the home itself, but because she had been changed.

The three weeks that she had been gone Underground changed her more than the three years she had been away in college.

Toby was kinder to her and not as chaotic as he was before. He went to bed when she asked him to and played all sorts of games with her.

The day before she was to leave for college, Toby asked her something.

"Sarah?" He asked when she was giving him ice cream. "Do you believe in magic?"

Sarah paused a bit at the question. "Yeah, I do."

Toby leaned forward. "Why are you sad, Sarah?"

Sarah was taken aback by the question. "I'm not sad. I'm here with you."

That last part was true, she was happy to be back with her family. Joy filled her entire being at spending quality time with each of them. She tried to never take them for granted just as she had learned when she was 16, but her recent time away had made her even more careful about spending time with the people that she loved.

Toby hummed. "I don't know, Sar. You have a sad love in your eyes."

Sarah froze. "Toby, what did you say?"

"I said that you have a sad love. I heard it in a song once."

Sarah stood up, massaging her forehead.

That was the first lyric of the song he had sang for her in the crystal dream. "How do you know that song?"

Toby shrugged. "I think I had a dream. I remember goblins and a man with funny hair."

"And what else do you remember?" Sarah looked at him carefully.

Toby shrugged. "I remember the phrase 'Dance, Magic Dance' but I can't remember anything else."

Okay, that wasn't helpful to her.

"Sar?" Toby scooped more of his ice cream in his mouth. "You look like you're sad like when your boyfriends stopped dating you. Except more sad. Did a boy stop dating you?"

Sarah was amazed at how intuitive her brother was. How he was able to read her so well. "You know, you are nosy." She poked his nose.

"Nuh uh!" He giggled. "I just know. Are you sad?"

Sarah thought about Jareth again. It seemed that no matter how much she wanted to not think about him, he always seemed to pop up in her mind. "A little, yeah."

She fluffed his hair. "Toby, I have a question for you. About boys."

"Ask away!" He said, the perfect impression of their father.

"Let's say that there's this guy." Sarah wrung her hands. "And that he was kind of mean before. But then became nice. And he kept an important secret from me."

"Like if he ate your snacks?" Toby's eyes were wide.

Sarah shrugged. "No, but yeah, something like that. Let's say that he feels bad and tells the truth later, after he ate the snacks. What should I do?"

Toby thought about it for a moment. "Well, stealing isn't nice."

Sarah laughed. "Yes, that's true."

"But, did he tell the truth before or after you found out?"

Sarah tilted her head. "Before, I suppose."

"So maybe he should be forgiven?" Toby said. "You forgive me when I do things."

"That's different than a relationship when you need trust." Sarah mumbled.

"I don't know, Sarah." Toby shrugged. "I'm only six."

Sarah snorted while she laughed. "Oh Tobes."

Toby grinned. "Yeah, but maybe you already know. I know that you always feel good when you make the right choice with boys."

Sarah didn't get any answers from him, but she did feel more confident. "Thanks, buddy. You may be only six, but you are wise beyond your years."

* * *

Sarah could hardly pay attention in class.

"Oh, I can't believe that I'm going berserk over a guy!" She threw her notebook on the desk in frustration.

But it wasn't just any guy. It was Jareth, the Goblin King. Jareth, who had shaped the person she had grown into back when she was sixteen. Jareth, the man who got along with her the best and was kind to her even at his worst.

Everything about her felt wrong. Everything felt painful. Like she was barely holding up fractured parts of herself because she had a missing piece.

She had brought the crystal with her, but had not looked at it at all. She was too scared to. To frightened to see what would be in it.

One day, after a particularly terrible pop quiz, she made a rash decision. Two weeks into the term, and she dropped out of all her classes.

Sarah Williams never made a rash decision since she was sixteen because she knew how important it was to mean something before taking action when you could. With this, she couldn't just stand back. She was failing her classes this early and wasn't going to do well anyway. She needed to get out of here. She needed to go somewhere that will allow her mind to process what it needed to process.

Hoggle WAS right: once you get to the center of the labyrinth, you'll never get out again. Physically she could, but a part of her would always stay.

With her friends. With Jareth.

"Where are you going? Sarah!" Anita, her roommate asked her. "Sarah, please talk to me!"

Sarah, suitcase in hand and some cash sighed. "I'm taking this quarter off. I can't deal with the stuff in my head. I'm going to see my Mom."


	16. Her Mother's Love

Sarah went to the airport and bought the next flight to Manhattan. It was going to cost her a fortune, but she didn't care. She HAD to see her mom. She would worry about the cost later.

When she got there, she practically broke down the door knocking into it with her fist.

The door opened to reveal a man with neat blond hair and calm blue eyes in a comfortable robe. He blinked at the state of her. "Sarah?"

"Hey Jeremy." She said, trying to not break down in front of her stepfather.

He ushered her in, taking her bags for her. "I wasn't expecting you."

"Yeah, neither is Mom." She took off her jacket and set it down on a chair.

Jeremy looked very concerned. He took her jacket and hung it up for her. "Sarah, are you alright? I thought that you're in school. Are you running away from someone?"

Sarah was about to shake her head but paused for a moment. In a way she kind of was...

He looked alarmed. "Should we call the cops?"

"No, nothing like that." She sat on the couch, her mind in a flurry. "I swear, I'm not being hurt or anything like that."

Jeremy sat next to her. "Well, alrighty. I'll set up your room for you. Make yourself at home."

She smiled at him. "Thank you."

Unlike with Karen, Sarah had welcomed Jeremy with opened arms. Part of it was the fact that she had already gone through it with Karen since her mom met Jeremy a few years after her dad remarried. It was easier to when he and her mother lived far away and Jeremy showered her with presents since he didn't live with her so he wasn't afraid to spoil her. She realized now that Karen loved her just as much as Jeremy did. Sarah bad been bitter about her parents' divorce, but the truth was, they were just a terrible match. Wonderful parents, but a terrible match. Linda saw Sarah often and retained a close relationship with her Dad and Karen. Both Karen and Jeremy had known her since she was a child, so they knew her very very well.

Another reason that she got along better with Jeremy when she was young was because of his line of work. As an actor with her mother, he was all about encouraging her imagination and reaching for the skies. Karen and Robert were much more rooted in reality. They never exactly stifled Sarah's creativity, but they would remind her to look to reality, something that didn't go so well when she was younger.

Jeremy came back out after a few minutes. "Your room is all set up, kiddo. Your Mom is working late, teaching a dance class but will be home in an hour or so. I told her that you're here. Are you hungry?"

Sarah nodded. "Yeah, I don't need much though."

Jeremy was already making a sandwich for her. "Do you want to talk about what's wrong?"

Sarah moved to sit at the kitchen counter. She looked at her hands, feeling jittery. "There's this guy... It's kind of complicated."

"Matters of the heart always are, my dear." He took out two slices of bread. "Mayo? Mustard?"

"Both please, and thank you." She started to tear up. "It's sort of life decision stuff and I guess I'm just having a sort of mental break down. I dropped out of all my classes. On a whim too."

Jeremy gave her a tissue. "And you miss your mom."

"Yeah, I have to see her. Not just to talk on the phone. I have to see her." She repeated, sniffing.

Jeremy cut a slice of tomato for her, just as she liked it. "I get that, sometimes we just need our moms. No matter how old we get. And your mom is the best. It's why I married her." His eyes looked up in a wistful manner.

Sarah smiled as he set the sandwich down. "She really is."

He sat next to her. "Well, let me tell you. No guy is worth going so insane that you're dropping out of classes. Especially you, of all people. I know how you plan and how meticulous you are. I'm not kidding when I say that you're one of the smartest people I've ever met."

Sarah beamed. "Thank you. That means a lot coming from you."

Jeremy rubbed her shoulder. "I know you'd rather talk to her, but trust me when I say that when it comes to love, I'm sure that I've seen it and been through it myself, at least somewhat. Not exactly of course, but I'm sure that I've been in an almost identical situation as yours."

Sarah tried to not laugh at his face at the moment. She thought of Jareth, how he was cursed, how she had been wished away, how she went through this fantastic, magical journey…

"No offense, Jeremy, but I really don't think that this is something you've been through." She shrugged.

Jeremy rolled his eyes a little. "Oh you young people. Trust me when I say that you'll be saying the same thing when you're my age."

_No, pretty sure I won't._ But she smiled anyway. "Yeah, maybe."

He stood up, giving her a comforting smile. "I'll let you eat in peace. Like I said, anything here is yours to snack around or to use as always. You're always welcomed in our home."

Sarah didn't realize how hungry she was until she started eating. "Thank you for dropping everything to set up the room and get me food."

"You're welcome, Sarah. It's what parents do."

When Linda came home, she made sure to bring Chinese takeout for Sarah. That was often their comfort food when they had long chats. "Sweetie, oh, are you okay?"

"I'm fine, Mom." She hugged Linda. She could see the wrinkle line on her face and felt a bit sad that it had been so long since she last saw her.

"Well apparently not if you came all this way to see me." She rubbed Sarah's arms. "Do you want to talk about it in your room?"

They closed the door. Sarah realized then that she had no idea how to even start.

"Sweetie?" Linda put an arm around her.

Sarah looked at her mother. "You're going to think I'm crazy."

Linda laughed at that. "No crazier than me, I'm sure both your father and Jeremy can attest to that."

Sarah shuddered. "I don't even know where to start."

"You start from the beginning." Linda got a hairbrush and started to go through Sarah's hair. It was what they did whenever they had long talks. It was comforting and it gave their hands something to do. "Know that whatever you say, whatever you've done, no matter how terrible it is, I love you. Forever and always."

Sarah felt strength anew. It was just what she needed to hear. "Okay, but you have to listen to the whole thing. No matter how insane it sounds."

She reminded her mother about the little Labyrinth book that she had gotten for her. "Do you remember how I was obsessed with it?"

Linda laughed. "Yes I do, you loved the book."

Sarah told her about how she wished Toby away. How the King of the Goblins came to her, how she won his labyrinth. How she had been wished back to be with him by Toby. How Jareth saved her life. How she had feelings for him. How they had argued but then became friends. How she felt betrayed by him when she took a chance on him. How she came back just in time to save Toby.

Linda stayed quiet the whole time, just brushing even when Sarah's hair was straight. When Sarah was done, she still kept brushing.

"Mom?" Sarah said quietly. "You don't think I'm crazy, do you?"

"Sarah…" Linda put the brush down and sat facing her daughter. "You know that I've always had a kind of belief in magic. But this is a whole different level. To think that you have not only met such a… creature… but had feelings for him and him for you." She put a hand on Sarah's forehead. "Are you well?"

"I'm not lying!" Sarah started to get hysterical. There was no one else she trusted with this information. Except maybe Toby, but he was too young to understand about romance.

"I didn't say you were." Linda held onto her shoulders, steadying her. "Were you hurt or anything? Maybe your memory is being altered?"

"No." Sarah was firm. "Fine. I'm going to prove it to you."

She flipped her luggage over and undid the locks on it. She pulled out a beautiful dress, the same yellow-gold dress that she had the night she danced with Jareth. "This is the dress I wore on that date with him."

She set it on the bed, Linda looking at it. Her mother, along with being a fantastic actress in her own right, was a wonderful seamstress. "Wow, this is beautiful. You can tell this was hand stitched too. This must have cost a fortune with how long it took to make this." She wanted to ask where Sarah got it, but held back as she would just say that it was from that Goblin King.

Sarah picked up the crystal ball that Jareth had given her. She carried it with the deepest reverence to her mother. "This is the crystal he gave me."

Linda took it from her. "Sarah, this looks like a normal crystal."

Sarah laughed dryly, surprising Linda. "That's what he said to me too. _'It's a crystal, nothing more. But if you turn it this way, it will show you your dreams.'_ "

"So this is to show your dreams?" Linda shook it a little like you would a snow globe, but nothing showed up.

"Well, not this crystal." Sarah took it from her mother. "It's supposed to show the Underground creatures. And him. To remember them by."

With the shock wearing off of her, Linda was able to read Sarah better now. She could tell that her sweet daughter had so many feelings, all genuine feelings too. And all directed to this king that she was talking about.

Sarah held the crystal out. "Show me Hoggle."

The crystal swirled inside then an image of her friend showed up. He was gardening, wiping sweat off his brow.

Linda gasped. "Is that-"

"A dwarf? Yeah." Sarah didn't want to look too long. She missed Hoggle so much. "Show me Ludo."

The crystal swirled again. In it was Ludo and Sir Didymus together. The two were talking in hushed tones. Well, Sir Didymus was talking. Ludo was listening as he always was.

She asked to show the goblins, including Evie. They all looked sad. Many were crying and holding candles. Sarah couldn't take it anymore, seeing them cry. They were probably crying over her. She put the crystal away after that.

"You didn't ask to see the King." Linda noticed.

Sarah shook her head. "No, I didn't. Mom, everything is so confusing."

"Well how do you feel?" Linda held Sarah's hand.

Sarah looked at her mother's hand. The soothing hand that had taken care of her, that had comforted her throughout the worst times of her life.

The fog in her mind cleared.

"I'm in love with him." Sarah whispered.

To actually think the words out loud made it so much more real. She looked at Linda, tears coming down her face. "It's why it hurt so much when I found out that he was keeping it from me. But what do I do?"

Linda wiped her tears. "I think that you were noble in choosing what was right, in choosing Toby both times you left the Goblin King. That he did a lot of things that were wrong. But according to what you said, you did too. So maybe, just realize that this was his way of amending things."

"That doesn't explain what I should do." Sarah said a little tiredly.

Linda rolled her eyes a little, but not in frustration. More of amusement. "I think you know, you just are scared and would rather someone tell you what to do so it's not on your conscience."

Sarah thought about it for a moment. "Yeah, you're right."

"It's why you came here, isn't it?" Linda asked.

Sarah's nod confirmed it. "I should talk to him. I think I would regret it otherwise."

Sarah got out the crystal. She was ready. She took a deep breath. "Show me Jareth."

The crystal swirled and revealed Jareth, sleeping in his bed. Sarah felt her heart constrict at seeing him. He sat up, coughing.

Sarah let out a sound of pain when she saw that he was coughing up blood. He laid back in his bed, sweat dotting his brow.

"He's dying." She said in horror.

Time stopped for her in that moment. She didn't even feel sentient, couldn't even feel her own body.

"Sarah? Sarah!" Linda caught Sarah in her arms as she fainted onto the floor. "JEREMY!" She screamed for her husband.

Jeremy came in, carrying Sarah to the bed. He and Linda both revived her. Sarah felt like SHE was the one who was dying after seeing Jareth the way that he was.

When she was stabilized and Jeremy had left, she knew what she had to do.

"I'm going to go back to him." She told her mother. "I will try to come back, to see you. But I HAVE to see him."

Linda caressed Sarah's hair. "My sweet baby girl. From the moment our children are born, we raise them so that they can live away from us. That's the whole point of being a parent. I'll be fine."

Linda's voice broke a little at this. "I love you."

"I love you too." Sarah hugged her. "I'll find a way back to you. But I have to see Jareth."

Linda kissed Sarah's forehead. "You're a woman now, you have my blessing. I can't help but worry. I know you've made the right decision for your life."

Sarah gave the crystal to her. "Here, so you can watch over me. Will you give Jeremy, Dad, Karen, and Toby my love?"

Linda wiped the tears from her eyes. "You can tell them yourself when you get back."

She didn't know how she knew, but she could feel it. That this wasn't a goodbye. She always knew that her Sarah was an extraordinary girl with a strong will.

She stood up, still wearing her nightgown. "I wish the goblins would take me away. Right now."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sometimes, the best person to talk to is your mom. My mom is wonderful, although being very, VERY traditionally SE Asian it's not really the best thing to talk about romance with her lol. However, in most matters, she is the best person to go to. I also thought it would be interesting to put in the other side of Sarah's life, and also I've made Linda a bad mom often enough in my stories that she deserves some good storylines. Thank you again! This story is close to ending.


	17. A Love That Will Last

Sarah didn't waste any time. She ran up the steps, taking two at a time. She slowed down when she saw the goblins looking sad, not even causing chaos.

She saw Hoggle, Ludo, and Sir Didymus with the line of goblins. "Guys!"

All three turned, shocked to see her.

"Sarah!"

"My Lady!"

"Girlie, I missed ya!"

Sarah hugged all three of them. "I'm so sorry that I didn't say goodbye."

"What happened?" Hoggle rubbed his eyes, trying to hide his tears but was doing a terrible job at it.

Sarah looked down, feeling awful. "I had an argument with Jareth. It's a long story. I had to get away, I didn't want to see him but I had been planning on coming back."

When she said her last sentence, she realized that it was always true. She had always intended on coming back in the back of her mind. She may have not thought about it consciously during the turmoil of the past few days, but she definitely did want to come back, even if she was mad at Jareth.

"I understands." Hoggle patted her shoulder. "Sometimes ya just have ta get away from him."

Sarah smiled sadly. "It appears that I can come back. I'm the Champion of the Labyrinth, so it means that I can freely leave. I missed you guys so much, but I have to say it was nice to see my family again."

"My Lady…" Sir Didymus was in awe. "Thou art spectacular. Thou art no damsel in distress and deserved to have seen thy family. But, why is My Lady back here?"

Sarah made sure to look at all of them with serious eyes. "I need to see Jareth. What's happened to him?"

They looked unsure of what to tell her, all looking at each other in fear.

"Tell me." She said with authority.

"King sick. King very sick." Ludo hung his head.

Sir Didymus wrung his hands. "I know that it is not in good form to talk about such things, but I fear that he is dying."

Sarah felt her heart squeeze in terror.

"His Majesty has asked to put away his things, as if there will be a new occupant soon. He has also asked for a letter to be given to the High Queen, should he pass away."

Sarah put a hand on her heart, steadying herself. "I have to see him."

"Sarah?" Ludo took her hand. "Why?"

Sarah stood up, shaking. "Because… I care about him. I would be in his place if I could."

"Sarah, don't say stuff like that." Hoggle looked alarmed.

"Would you like us to accompany you, My Lady?" Sir Didymus asked her.

Sarah shook her head. "No, thank you. You three are the best friends a girl could ever have. I will see him alone. But should I need you,"

She hugged them all at once. "I will call."

So alone, the Champion of the Labyrinth made her way to the King's chambers. She was about to knock when she felt tugging on her leg.

"Lady!" Evie hugged her. "I misses you lots."

Tears were streaming down her face as Sarah helped the little goblin, giving her as much assurance as she could.

"Don't go in!" She pointed at Jareth's door. "Kingy is sick. Kingy no want anyone to go in."

Sarah patted Evie's head, comforting her. "I know. But I'm going to, okay?"

"Kingy so tired, he not want to bog us." Evie tried to explain to Sarah the gravity of the situation as much as she could. "He that sick. I worry."

Sarah knelt down in front of Evie. "I'll handle him, okay? I'll take care of him."

Evie gave a nervous nod. "Okie. I go now. Lady need me, Lady call."

Sarah told her she would.

She didn't even bother to knock, she just turned the doorknob and went in.

What she saw made her break down in tears.

Jareth looked much worse than when she had seen him in the crystal. He was so pale and clammy. His eyes were closed, looking bruised and he was shirtless, revealing the sweat dotting his chest.

"I told you lot to leave me alone." She heard his voice croak. "Leave me."

"Jareth," she went to his side, her heart breaking. "It's me."

At her voice, he opened his eyes. "Sarah? It can't be."

She let out a dry laugh, holding his hand. It was cold and clammy but thankfully still alive. "It can and it is."

"No, not possible." He reached out, touching her cheek very gently. "You must be an illusion. I have wronged her too much for her to come back. Or maybe, you are the Angel of Death? Disguised to look like her to make my last moments happy? I suppose I can't complain."

"Stop saying those things." Sarah said fiercely, holding his cheek to her face. Tears fell freely. "I really am back. I promise."

He was feverish, his eyes not quite focused. A small smile was on his face. "It's really you?"

Sarah smoothed his hair. "Yes, Jareth. It's me. I came back here, to this room for you."

"Don't cry, Precious." He wiped a tear away with his thumb. "I didn't want you to see me like this."

Sarah started to get up, looking for a washcloth or something to cool him off. She was about to call the goblins but he hushed her. "Don't. Just let me go in peace."

"Jareth..." she sobbed, tears falling onto his chest. "I don't want you to go. Don't leave me."

"Shh." He put his finger to her lips. "You will be fine, Sarah. You have your family. Your loved ones."

He really didn't want to see her in pain, but he couldn't help but think of how happy he was that she was here with him. She really did look like an angel with her large green eyes and her beautiful hair framing her face even if she was crying.

His grandmother had said that someone had to proclaim their love him to break the spell. He was alright with the fact that he had learned to love, even if he would die. It was short, but it burned so brightly. It was more than he deserved. He understood that now.

"But what about you?" She put a hand on his chest, right above his heart. "There has to be a cure for whatever was happening."

Jareth just smiled at her. There was no cure, not for something like this. Her hand was warm, making him feel uncomfortably hot but he would rather break his own hands than to have her stop touching him at that moment. "I'm sorry, Sarah, for everything I did. For anything and everything wrong I've done. Maybe it's better this way, so that I can apologize to you. You deserved so much good in your life. Thank you for being here, for being my friend. For caring about and for me."

He traced the arch of her eyebrows. Her jawline. Her red lips. Oh, how he wanted to tell her that he loved her. How he wanted to kiss them. But it was better not to. If he did, he was afraid that she would live with guilt. That was the last thing he wanted for her.

"Jareth-" she started to speak.

He put a finger to her lips. "Shh. Let me finish. I want to say thank you. For bringing that shining light to my goblins. To my kingdom. To me. You light everything that you touch. Never let that light dim for anyone. Never stop being who you are. Thank you for blessing me with your wonderful self."

He closed his eyes. He could feel that his time was coming.

"Jareth." Sarah held his hand. "Please don't go."

He didn't respond.

"Jareth. Please." Her voice rose higher. "Don't leave me."

He took in one more breath. Then out.

And then stopped.

The beating of his heart under her hand had stopped and his grip on her hand went limp.

"No. NO!" Sarah tried to shake him. "Don't go!"

He still had that peaceful smile on his face.

Sarah started to sob hysterically. She knew that he was gone but she didn't want to accept it. "NO!"

She threw herself onto him, wrapping her arms around him. "I can't do this. I can't go on without you. Jareth, how am I supposed to keep shining?! How am I supposed to live without you?"

She tangled her fingers in his messy hair. "I love you. I love you more than I can say. How do you expect me to live with my heart belongs with you? How do I live when you took that heart with you?"

She climbed into the bed with him, cradling him in her arms. She kissed his forehead affectionately. "I love you so much. I have never loved anyone the way I love you. Why didn't I say it before? Jareth, please come back. Please."

This kind of love was rare. She could and would never love another ever again. He really have her entire heart, and probably had at least a part of it ever since they first met.

What she didn't realize was that as she was proclaiming her love and begging, his body was repairing itself at a rate that was unfathomable to humans and to fae alike. A soft glow emanated from where his heart was, spreading to the rest of his body.

Sarah buried her face in his neck, still crying. "You said you would be there for me as the world falls down. But my world is falling and you're not here. I'm sorry. This is all my fault. If I hadn't wished Toby away, if I hadn't come down here then you wouldn't have exerted your magic and-"

She felt something warm and feathery enveloping her. She was startled, immediately stopping her rant and whimpered, looking to her side.

There were wings wrapped around her.

She felt a finger dip under her chin. A gentle hand moved her to face forward.

She couldn't breathe and shut her eyes. She was too afraid to look. Afraid that she was imagining things.

"Sarah, open your eyes."

She opened them to meet two, beautiful mismatched eyes. His cheeks weren't grey and ashen anymore, but a healthy, reddish glow.

"Jareth?" She whispered quietly. "But you, you just-"

"You saved me, Sarah." He sat up, his arms and wings around her still. No one had ever looked at her like that. No one had ever had such adoration in their eyes for her. He brushed a hair from her face. "Did you mean it?"

She hugged around him, sobbing into his chest. "Yes! I love you, Jareth. I love you so much, I could fly."

He laughed, holding her even tighter to his chest. "I love you, Precious. I'm sorry for all the pain I've caused you. You deserve the moon. If you want to fly, I will take you to the skies with my wings."

She looked at his wings. Not just one wing, but TWO. "Your wings," she breathed in reverence. "They're back."

She ran her hand down the feathers but as gently as she could. "They're beautiful."

Jareth felt goosebumps up his spine. His wings were just as much of a part of his body as any other part of his body. For her to be touching them like this was making him feel so many things...

She looked into his eyes, happiness evident. As well as some questions.

"What do you wish to know?" He held her face in his hands. He would never get enough of her. He needed to be near her, to breathe in her scent and to touch her. After all, he had offered to be her slave once upon a time. "Anything you want to know, anything you need, I will give it to you. No more secrets between us."

Sarah couldn't believe how far they'd come. How they were so in love. How he was going to be fully honest with her. She had so many questions. What will happen now? What about his curse? Can she see her family? Can they travel between worlds? Can he see his own kind?

But she found that she didn't mind waiting.

She played with the chain of his medallion, feeling shy all of a sudden. "I do have a lot of questions..."

She shifted in his lap, her face closer to his. "But they can wait. Right now, I just want to be with you."

Jareth felt tears threatening to fall from his eyes. "My Precious Love."

Sarah slid her hands up his chest. Jareth took a deep breath in. It had been so long since he had been this close to anyone. She looked at his lips, carefully brushing her lips against his, as if scared of rejection.

Sarah had, of course, kissed before. But this was different. If there was such a thing as a soulmate, hers would be Jareth. The feeling inside of her was so overwhelming that she was afraid she'd fall over.

Jareth smiled as she started the kiss. He pushed it farther, enveloping her top lip with his own.

Sarah was shaking. She wanted him so much. She closed her eyes and kissed him a little harder. Jareth opened his lips, fully kissing her now.

Soon, they were pouring all of their love into the kiss. All of their hopes and dreams. Their desire for one another. Jareth held around her waist, Sarah wrapping her arms around his neck.

They pulled away for air. Jareth was now shaking harder than she was.

"Are you alright, Jareth?" She tangled her hands in his hair.

He nodded. "I just... I'm overwhelmed. Sarah, my love for you is so grand, I wonder if my heart can fit all of it in."

He leaned forward and kissed below her ear. Then across her jaw and down to her neck and her collar bone, whispering words of adoration. Sarah gasped as his lips made sure she felt good. Neck kisses were some of her biggest weakness.

"I love you." He hugged her tighter. "You are the only person I've ever loved like this. My light, my life."

Sarah traced her hands up his pointy ears. "Really?"

"Yes." He repressed a groan at her touching his ears. They were quite sensitive. "I have courted before but... never in love."

Sarah rubbed her nose against his. "I can't say I never loved before. But I can say that I've never loved anyone as much as you."

After a few more minutes of this, Sarah got up to tell the goblins that their king would be just fine, that he would heal but needed rest. She requested the cook to come in a few hours with some food for them both. She asked for some privacy until tomorrow.

She climbed back into bed with him, Jareth and his wings enveloping around her. "What do you want to do now?"

Sarah yawned a bit and snuggled against his chest. "I'm kinda tired, been up for a long time. Can we just go to sleep together? I don't want to be away from you."

Jareth kissed the top of her forehead. "Go to sleep, Precious. We will never part again for as long as you wish."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Predictable, but I felt bad about his wings. He deserves to have them back! I'm pleased that you guys seem to like the chapter with her mom and her stepdad. I thought it would be fitting she would be the one to guide Sarah back.
> 
> I contemplated on a chapter to explain everything but eh, I think there's something beautiful about simplicity. I'll just leave this as it is. Thank you for this! I hope that the ending was what you expected and wanted.


	18. Epilogue

_An indeterminate amount of time later_

Sarah looked over the Labyrinth from the balcony. There was something magical about the moon, how it made even the harshest of edges soft. How it seemed to make everything glow and seem enchanting. She felt a breeze gently caressing her face, leaving the sashes on her dress to trail behind her.

She heard foot steps but made no move to acknowledge them. She closed her eyes, breathing in the clean, night air. All her life, she had never experienced such peace and quiet as she had here, in the Underground.

Her arms felt something soft enveloping around her. Many would have thought it was a blanket but she knew better. Two magnificent wings enveloped around her body, keeping her warm. Two pairs of gloved hands wrapped around her waist, pulling her close to the body behind her. Sarah let out a breath of contentment as two soft lips found her neck, giving her loving and sensual kisses. One of her hands rested on top of the ones around her abdomen, the other intertwined into his hair.

"How is my beautiful wife?" Jareth continued to trail kisses around to the other side of her neck, then biting his lip when the hand in his hair moved to caress one of his pointy ears.

"Well, she was doing fine until her husband got here." She teased.

Jareth raised an eyebrow. "Are you lying to me now?"

Sarah turned in his arms and hugged him. She looked up at him, her chin pressed into his chest so that he couldn't help but smile. "Of course not. I was fine, but now I'm fantastic."

"Keep inflating my ego. I'm more than happy to hear such wondrous praise for me." He kissed the tip of her nose. "I just got done talking to your brother."

"Oh? I didn't know he called." Sarah smoothed her hand over his feathers. Sometimes, she had to touch his wings. To remind herself that he was fine, that his body was whole. She tried to not think too much about the time he saved her life but at the same time, she needed to keep that memory. She found out later that when she won the Labyrinth and Jareth's subsequent feelings for her mixed in, she had a bit of power in her to revive him and to restore his wings. She slept for a good while after they had reunited, his grandmother the High Queen of all people came after the curse was broken and healed her.

"He just wanted to say hello. All four of your parents want us to join them for dinner." He folded his wings over her even more.

" _Dinner-dinner_ you mean?" She winked.

She squealed when he lifted her off the ground and spun her around. She almost fell when he set her down but he carried her, bridal style.

"You will never let that go, won't you?" He tried to chastise her but his Goblin Queen was too adorable for that.

"Never." She put one hand on his face and kissed his cheek as he walked to their chambers. "Besides, _dinner-dinner_ is a date, not a family affair. I only have _dinner-dinners_ with you." She smiled when his lips twitched into a smile.

"Good, because I don't share." He used magic to open the door. He set her down on their bed and laid his head on her lap.

"You better not, we bound our souls together." She played with his hair and massaged his ears just the way she knew he liked. "You're mine forever."

"You're lucky you're cute, it makes up for all the teasing you inflict upon me." He closed his eyes and let her do her magic. "I thought some of the goblins were going to call for a mutiny when Evie saw me eating chicken nuggets."

Sarah laughed at the thought. "Hey, that's not my fault. You stole my chicken nuggets from me, gloating when you devoured them! Of all places to eat chicken, the throne room was the worst place. I thought Evie was going to kill you with the whole ' _chickens are friends, not food_ ' mantra."

"Well, she loves you and so she would't dare to hurt me when her 'Queenie' would be mortified." He sat up and gave her a shoulder rub.

Sarah could feel all the stress melting from his hands. He had taken his gloves off, the skin to skin contact making her feel so much more relaxed than before. "That's correct."

She laid back into the pillows, pulling her Goblin King with her. "I had a busy but good day. I want to tell you all about it, let's do it over lunch tomorrow. I promised to have breakfast with Hoggle, Sir Didymus, and Ludo since you said that you're doing paperwork all morning."

They had a rule: to not talk about politics or any work in their bed. If they needed to, they would go to the couch and do it there. This was their space, their safe haven.

Jareth nuzzled into her neck, pulling a blanket over them and leaning over her for a kiss. "I look forward to that, Precious."

Sarah held him back. "I love you, Jareth."

"And I you, Sarah. For all of time."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Simple ending, I had thought about putting a long thing to explain stuff (weddings, their talk about how Sarah came back or Jareth's wings and all that) but sometimes, less is truly more. This was meant to be a very simple but sweet story anyway. Thank you for reading this! I hope that you liked it.


End file.
